How can we avoid sin?

An evil man is held captive by his own sins; they are ropes that catch and hold him.

Proverbs 5:22

We are told that an evil man is held captive by his own sins, his sins are ropes that catch and hold him. Sometimes, we think it is Satan or his evil spirits that are holding us captive; but this scripture tells us that it is our own sins that are like ropes that catch and hold us. So the question is, how can we avoid sin since it leads to bondage?

1. Surrender our lives to Jesus

You see, human beings are born with a sinful nature (Psalm 51:5). The only way we can overcome evil in this life is to accept the free gift of salvation by surrendering our lives to Jesus, because He is the only One Who can save us from our sins:

And she will have a son, and you are to name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Matthew 1:21 (NLT)

2. Be transformed in our thinking

Once we accept Jesus Christ as our Saviour and we become born again, we should no longer conform to this world, but we must be transformed by the renewing of our mind. We renew our mind and develop a new way of thinking by reading and meditating on the Word of God:

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Romans 12:2 (NLT)

3. Cultivate the fruit of the Spirit

Once we surrender our lives to Jesus Christ and begin to read His Word on a daily basis to transform our mind, we will then begin to develop the fruit of the Holy Spirit. As we rely on the Holy Spirit to help us on our journey, He begins to transform our thinking so that we are convicted anytime we get a temptation to do the evil things we used to do. He produces in us the desire to do good instead:

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

Galatians 5:22-23

Prayer

Dear Lord, please help me to overcome every sin in my life so that it will not become a snare unto me in Jesus’ name, amen.

 

Events

Finding Your Purpose and Overcoming Limiting Mindset and Book Launch, Friday 27 October 2017

Breaking Free Deliverance Service every Tuesday

Breakthrough to Your Purpose Retreat 2017 from 1-3 December 2017

New Books for 2017

My Purpose Journal

Why I Changed My Name

How to Stop the Negative Voices in your Head

How Jesus Healed

God bless,

Blessing Theophilus-Israel

Spiritual Life Coach

God’s Word will never fail: He will do all of what He has promised

Not a word failed of any good thing which the Lord had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass.

Joshua 21:45

We learn in the Scripture above that not one word failed of any good thing that God had spoken to Israel. Everything He said concerning Israel came to pass. As it was then, so it is now; we can be assured that everything God has promised us in His Word for our lives will come to pass. Here is why:

1. God never fails

Moses assured the children of Israel that God will personally go ahead of them and He will be with them. He said that He will never fail them and that is what He wants you to know today. No matter what you may be going through, God will never abandon or fail you:

Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”

Deuteronomy 31:8 (NLT)

2. Not one of God’s Word will fail

Jesus told us that until heaven and earth disappear, not one small detail of God’s Word will disappear until it has been fulfilled:

I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved.

Matthew 5:18 (NLT)

3. The Word of God will accomplish the thing it was sent to do

The Word of God will always produce fruit. It will accomplish all of what God wants it to and will prosper everywhere He sends it:

So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.

Isaiah 55:11 (NKJV)

Prayer

Dear Lord, I thank You that Your word is alive and powerful. Help me to believe that Your word will never fail and that You will do all of what You have promised in Jesus name, amen.

Blessing 1-2-1 Coaching

Find out more about my 1-2-1 coaching services here:

1-2-1 Spiritual Life Coaching

Blessing’s Upcoming Workshops

Please sign up for the following workshops:

Breakthrough To Your Purpose Women’s Retreat 2016, weekend of 9-11 December 2016

How to Discover Your Life’s Purpose Through Dreams

Do you know God’s purpose for your life? If not, please buy a copy of: How to Discover Your Life’s Purpose Through Dreams

God bless,

Blessing Theophilus-Israel

Spiritual Life Coach

God is Our Refuge

The Lord also spoke to Joshua, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘Appoint for yourselves cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses, that the slayer who kills a person accidentally or unintentionally may flee there; and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood.

Joshua 20:1-3

God told Joshua that he must speak to the children of Israel and appoint cities of refuge so that a person who accidently kills someone may run there; it was to be a city of refuge. Today, we may not have a physical city of refuge that we can run to if we are in trouble, however we can run to God in prayer because:

1. God is our Refuge

The Bible tells us that God is our refuge and strength. He is our refuge because He gives us hope, our shelter, and we can trust Him and run to Him when we are in trouble:

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Psalm 46:1

2. God is our Fortress

A fortress is a strong defence, a stronghold and that is what God is to His children:

I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust.

Psalm 91:2

God is our Deliverer 

God is our Saviour, deliverer and preserver. He has delivered us from the kingdom of darkness and translated us into the Kingdom of His dear Son Jesus Christ (Colossians 1:13):

The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;

My God, my strength, in Whom I will trust;

My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

Psalm 18:2

Prayer

Dear Lord, I thank You that You are my refuge and strength, and a very present help in trouble. Help me to not be afraid but to trust You completely in Jesus name.

Blessing 1-2-1 Coaching

Find out more about my 1-2-1 coaching services here:

1-2-1 Spiritual Life Coaching

Blessing’s Upcoming Workshops

Please sign up for the following workshops:

Breakthrough To Your Purpose Women’s Retreat 2016, weekend of 9-11 December 2016

How to Discover Your Life’s Purpose Through Dreams

Do you know God’s purpose for your life? If not, please buy a copy of: How to Discover Your Life’s Purpose Through Dreams

 

You are God’s special people

In today’s Scripture God want you to know that you are His special people.

“Today the Lord your God commands you to obey all these laws and rules. Be careful to follow them with all your heart and soul. Today you have said that the Lord is your God. You have promised to live the way he wants. You promised to follow his teachings and to obey his laws and commands. You said you would do everything he tells you to do.

And today the Lord has accepted you to be his own people. He has promised you this. The Lord also said that you must obey all his commands. The Lord will make you greater than all the nations he made. He will give you praise, fame, and honor. And you will be his own special people, as he promised.”

Deuteronomy 26:16-19 (ERV)

 In this Scripture, Moses the man of God, tells the people of Israel that if they do everything The Lord requires of them then the Lord will make them His special people. As believers in Jesus Christ, the Lord is saying the same thing to us today. If we will believe in God by accepting Jesus Christ His Son as our Lord and Saviour, The Lord will also accept us as His own people and we will be God’s special people. Let’s take a closer look at this scripture.

What does The Lord require from us for us to be His own special people?

1. Obey all His laws and rules – do everything The Lord has told us to do in His Word – The Holy Bible. Just like Jesus, we should surrender our will to the Father and do all that He has commanded us to do “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me” (John 6:38)
2. Be careful to follow them with all your heart and soul – we should put our all in serving God and follow His Word with all our heart and soul “Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’” (Matthew 22:37)
3. Make The Lord your God – there are many god’s out there. Some are made of stones, metal and wood, some even worship the sun and the moon. Some worship their money, car, family etc. But The Lord who made heaven and earth, the God of Israel, wants you to make Him your Lord and God: “But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases. Their idols are silver and gold, The work of men’s hands” (Psalm 115:3-4)
4. Live in the way God wants – there are many philosophies out there of different ways to live the good life, however God wants us to walk in love (Ephesians 5:2), walk as children of light (Ephesians 5:8), and walk in in wisdom (Ephesians 5:15)
5. Follow the teachings of God – we should do what The Word says “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22)
6. Obey His laws and commands – even in the face of difficulty and persecution The Lord wants us to do what He says “But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29);
7. Do everything God tells you to do – The Lord wants us to do everything He tells us to do so that He will make us prosperous and give us good success “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success” (Joshua 1:8)

Once we do what The Lord require, what will The Lord do for us?

1. The Lord will accept us as His own people – to be accepted is to have the assurance that we belong to God and that no one can take us from His hand; “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.” (John 10:28-30)
2. The Lord will make you greater than all the nations He made – it has always been the will of The Father to make those who obey Him great and to give them a great name. God told Abraham, Israel’s ancestor, that if he will leave his father’s house and go to a land that He will show him; “I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing” (Genesis 12:2)
3. The Lord will give you praise – God is a faithful God, and when you listen to Him, He will give you fame and praise “At that time I will bring you back, Even at the time I gather you; For I will give you fame and praise Among all the peoples of the earth, When I return your captives before your eyes,” Says the Lord” (Zephaniah 3:20)
4. The Lord will give you fame – God makes those who obey Him famous. Listen to what He told David, the man who was after God’s own heart: “And I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and have made you a great name, like the name of the great men who are on the earth” (2 Samuel 7:9)
5. The Lord will give you honour – because Solomon asked wisdom from God, God gave him both riches and honour “And I have also given you what you have not asked: both riches and honor, so that there shall not be anyone like you among the kings all your days” (1 Kings 3:13)
6. You will be God’s special people – when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour we become God’s special people “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9)

Prayer of Surrender

If you would like to become God’s special people but have not yet surrendered your life to Jesus, please pray this prayer of surrender from your heart:

Lord Jesus, I believe You are the Son of God. I believe that You are the way, the truth and the life and no man comes to the Father but by You. I believe You died on the cross and You were raised from the dead.

I accept that I am a sinner and have come short of the glory of God. I now confess my sins and ask You to please forgive me for the sins of (……..please take your time and name them one by one and make a decision not to do them again).

Please wash me clean with Your precious blood that was shed for me on the Cross. Please remove me from the kingdom of darkness and bring me into Your Kingdom of Light. I want to know you Jesus, and have a loving relationship with God my Father.

Please become the Lord of my life and fill me with Your Holy Spirit so that I can live a victorious life.

From today, please gain control over my spirit, my soul, my mind, my will and my emotions. Please help me to live for You. Thank You Jesus.

Father, I now come to You in the name of Jesus. Thank You for giving Jesus Christ Your Son to die for me so that I can have a loving relationship with You. Please guide and direct my steps from this day forward in Jesus name.

Father, I know You created me for a purpose. Please show me why You have created me and what You want me to do with the rest of my life in Jesus’ name.

Next Steps

Dear Friend, if you have prayed this prayer from your heart, you have become a child of God, His own special people. Please get a Bible and start reading the Word of God, because the Word of God is Spirit and it is life. You literally become transformed as you read the Word of God. If you do not have a Bible please read it at: https://www.biblegateway.com/

Please find a Church where the pure Word of God is preached and join fellowship with other believers. This will help you to be strong and to grow in the Lord.

Dear Brother or Sister, if you have prayed this prayer, we would love to hear from you. Please send an email and we will send you a Bible and some excellent reading material to help you on this Christian journey: info@blessingcoaching.com

God bless,

Blessing