Author: Pastor Rufus Ajiboye

When I hear the preaching of God’s Word, God speaks to me through someone else. When I read the Word, God speaks to me directly. There are things He wants to speak to me personally, without mediators. God wants me to fellowship with Him so that He can teach me. When you hear the word through the other preaching of people, you can hear things that you do not fully understand or you might even say you do not agree with some things. However, when you fellowship with God through the reading of His Word and God reveals some things to you, you cannot say it is someone else’s opinion.

You and I are in the middle of spiritual battle and we need the weapon that would help us fight and overcome the enemy. God’s Word is His weapon, His sword. If the Word is in us, we will always be able to easily overcome temptation, sin and enemy.

If God’s Word abides in us, we will be able to say as Jesus said: «It is written! It is written! It is written!» But if you are not ‘in shape’ and do not know what is written in the Word, you won’t have the necessary courage to proclaim God’s Word over your life and situation.

God wants us to be strong and healthy not only physically, but also spiritually. We do not need ‘spiritual fasts’. We can have physical fasts in order to gain spiritual power. But in order to become spiritually strong, we should daily feed on the Word. If you do not do it, you get weaker as a believer; you get weaker in your judgments and in your faith.

When we get weaker we must ‘eat’ spiritually; that is what God’s Word is there for: «…as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby» (1 Peter, 2:2).

God cleanses me through His Word, so I have to be absorbed in it daily. It might seem to you that you are not getting anything out of it, but it is not so. When we read the Word, we receive deep cleansing, just like people get clean when they bathe. It must be done as often as possible so we would stink spiritually. If you start to notice that you are getting quick-tempered, it means you need to wash it off. If you notice your heart closing up, it means you are not reading the Word and missing the cleansing. If you notice things that do not comply with Christian standards, for example, picking a quarrel, it is a sign of not being in the Word enough.

2. God’s Word is the best ‘cleansing agent’ for a human heart.

That is sufficient reason why we need to read God’s Word. The Word cleanses me. Jesus already cleansed me by His Blood when I got saved. I am clean and have access to God without any condemnation. Yet, I still need to experience daily cleansing.

There are many things that drive people’s life, motivate them and influence their system of values.

Many believers are driven by wrong motives today. In order to live strategically you definitely have to ask yourself these questions: “Why do I do what I do?”, “What are my secret motives?”, “What values influence my life?”, “What affects my decisions and my choice?”, “What is driving me in the spending of my money and time?”, “What drives my life?”

All things we have mentioned so far are connected together. Life is time, life is a goal, life is a test, life is trust, and now life is short.

This world as we know it now is not your home. God has a New Heaven and a new earth. The kingdom and the system of this world will be overthrown so that it becomes the Kingdom of our God and His Christ. Your life itself is regarded as a vapour that appears for a little time.

God puts us through test in order to search our hearts.

We understand that God knows everything. Therefore, He must know what is inside your heart, right? It’s written in the Bible that God knows all my thoughts, isn’t it? If so, why does God need to test me in order know what my heart is filled with since he already know?

Once we understand our life is a test, many questioned get solved by themselves and we can rejoice and enjoy our life. Those who understand that life is a test, they treat every difficult situation as an opportunity, not as an obstacle. The Bible often tells us how God tests His children. He is not doing it because He hates us nor because He wants to see our fall. Not at all! God puts us in test for few reasons. God blessed Abraham with a son first, then tested him asking to sacrifice his son on the altar. God allowed ordeals in Job’s life, then Job went through all that horror and bitterness.

God has created each of you for a certain purpose. God has a common purpose and a personal (individual) purpose for each of us. Our common goal is to glorify the Lord. However, God also has a peculiar purpose He has created every individual to fulfill. I was sent to the Earth to solve certain problems. If you are driven by such awareness you will live a strategical life. Each of you has a certain goal and a purpose set by God.