The true measure of faith

Habakkuk 2:4

Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.

Beware of cosmetic faith – the type that flaunts itself when situations are conducive yet easily surrenders itself when plans go contrary. Faith should never be a facade that we use to disguise our true self, and reflect some idealized conception to the world – such faith is not from God, it is corrupt and has a tendency of corrupting those who keep practicing it.

True faith is the one that upholds God and stands by His Word irrespective of the circumstance. It is bold and never entertains fear, even if fear may seem to be boisterous.  

Never approach God from the angle of your fear, God is not in the business of being a distribution channel for products manufactured by the devil. God wants faith not fear – fear is from the devil, faith is from God – do not confuse the two! When the devil sets up barricades on your dreams, and your goals seem to evaporate under the scorching heat of reality, allow the Spirit of God to be the cooling shade that gives rest to your sorrows and cares.

True Faith is not practiced in the absence of opposition, neither does it guarantee immunity from social ills, rather, it is our response to the militancy with which we are confronted with here on earth. Faith is our default response to the shuttering reality of pain and hardship that so easily encumbers and saturates our daily lives. It does not guarantee stillness of the storm, it just guarantees your safety in the midst of the storm – it does not make suffering disappear, it keeps you throughout the suffering.

Faith should never be muzzled by fear – God does not demand anything from you for which he has not capacitated you for. Your faith should not be a reflection of your doubts, but rather an extension of your hope and trust in the immovable power of God. Situations may be tough but never allow a test to set up boundaries between you and your testimony.

This, i declare is the measure of true faith - may God bless you ! 

Nhlanhla Buthelezi 

The ultimate price of our redemption

2 Peter 2:24, 25

24 “He personally bore our sins in His (own) body on the tree (as on an altar and offered Himself on it), that we might die (cease to exist) to sin and live to righteousness. By His wounds you have been healed.

25 For you were going astray like (so many) sheep, but now you have come back to the Shepherd and Guardian ( The Bishop) of your souls”.

He who carries something needs to be stronger than the weight of what He is carrying. When you carry something you get personal and intimate with it, hands are used, strength is exercised, feelings are involved and sometimes pain is experienced-nevertheless, you keep on carrying it till you reach your destination. Jesus carried a Cross, but the Cross was just a piece of wood used to punish criminals, if we were to be biblically correct - Jesus carried you, your issues, your mess, your shame, your sin, your guilt, your history and your weakness. There are two ways in which we can approach the Cross. We can approach the Cross from the past, by looking at its history, this approach makes us confront the thousand criminals who died on the Cross before Jesus – all of them crucified for breaking social law; or we can approach the Cross from the future, by looking to the future for the benefits of what Jesus did on the Cross in the past. This approach forces us to look beyond history, beyond Golgotha and into tomorrow, where the same Jesus who was crucified comes riding on the clouds and wearing a crown, not the one given to Him by the Roman soldiers but the one recognized in His kingdom. Outside of Jesus the cross reminds us of our weakness, but the Cross with Jesus on it - points us to the physician who remedies that weakness. The Cross is a symbol of death, but with Jesus it points us to the source of life.

Pilgrims in a foreign land...

Hebrews 11:10

 

  “For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.”

                                                                             ***

A pilgrim does not concern himself with current circumstances, because his focus and perspective is always onward, never backwards!

Pilgrims are ‘destination bound’– they are people on progress, their movement is not dependant on the severity of their current environments. Often in life, as Christians we forget that we are pilgrims in a foreign world. We become permanent tenants to a world that refuses to accept our identity as freely created beings belonging to a King whose Kingdom knows no geographical confines.

This world seems to inject us with poisonous venom that undermines our great commission and divine purpose. Pilgrims do not travel in the absence of pain, for during their travel the winds may be contrary, rains and storms may arise. Yet we are not to forget that this world in its current state is not our home, we are just pilgrims homeward bound,  called to greater dimensions of life, unmarred by sin and its slimy nature.

Are you tired and feeling helpless?

Do you feel burdened by the routine of life, death and illness, disappointment and fear?

I know of a home prepared for the victorious, wearied by life yet strengthened by their maker, pilgrims are people who live by principles that do not change or are easily influenced by others!

Such as:

Prayer – to navigate through the fierce winds that sink so many relation(ships)

The Bible – to find rooting and support to bear fruits of character in due season

We are not to have a mindset that is in tune with the social systems of this world. Pilgrims live by perspectives that are sharpened by faith in God!

Do not let your efforts to be cemented by despair, pick yourself up and continue travelling onward, you have a greater calling, one that is not to be validated or  assisted by men.

Awake my fellow pilgrim and let us travel through the thorns of life, for the Rose of Sharon aids our every step!

At His feet, on our knees

 Consider these few words of scripture:

1 Thesalonians 5:17

"Pray without ceasing.."

Many who have stood on their feet before the world, have failed to kneel before the feet of their Maker.

When life goes well with them they forget that feet may allow you to stand, but only knees enable you to keep on standing!

Knees that cannot bend before God have no right to stand before the world!

A man on his knees will always see further than a man on his feet, because Christianity is the only experience where knees will always be more powerful than feet.

Your feet may begin a journey towards a destination, but only your knees can ensure arrival!

On our knees we walk guided by Angelic Beings undetected by the naked eye!

On our knees the sick are healed...
The broken are built up....
The lost are found and the weak are strengthened.

Begin each day on your knees and let God show you the power of a prayerful life.

There are 7 reasons why we have been called to live on our knees as believers of Jesus Christ awaiting His coming,they are:

1: Prayer is what keeps us going
    When all that we depend on
    Has gone too far from our reach!

You are employed by the Grace of God,when that Job disappears,what has gone is the provision,not the provider!

By faith,prayer allows God to bless us with a different job even though it had seemed as if the previous one was all that we had!

Prayerful living perceives life through different perspectives-Where many see an obstacle,God sees a platform,where many see a dead end,God sees a breakthrough!

It is prayer that allows us to see things not as they are, but as seen by God from His position.

2: Prayer is oxygen,without it
     Suffocation is imminent!

You do not have to remind yourself of breathing, it is a reflex done effortlessly. However, should you stop inhaling oxygen,the worst is sure to follow - the same principle applies even in prayer.

3: Prayer is a connection of the
    Human to the divine

With the exception of Jesus, prayer is the only time God and man are one,two natures in one body-It is only when we continually pray that God dwells within us - Christology !

4: Prayer is life changing

No matter how frail, prayer is the only thing that converts the coldest of souls-Nothing else can - not a sermon, neither a song or a Revival seminar!

5: Prayer is spiritual power

Prayer gives the one praying power to overcome what would normally overcome him/her!

6: Prayer is priceless

Prayer costs nothing but your faithfulness, its effects may never be measured by monetary value - But it leaves you worth much more than silver and gold!

7: Prayer is the only thing the devil
    cannot do

The enemy can sing better than all congregations put together, he can preach better than revivalists - yet the one thing he fails to do is the very thing through which you defeat him - Prayer!

By

N Buthelezi

Who can walk?

Our text of consideration:

Genesis 5:8

  "And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him."

Enoch walked with God and he could not be found, he could not be found not because he had stopped walking-but he could not be found because he was now walking in a different world, a dimension inaccessible to human perception and reasoning.

Many of us can sing and shout, praise and preach but the question is, who can walk?

Who can walk when times are hard, nights are long and hours even longer?

Who can walk when in moments of distress and heartache, we succumb to the numbing and life exhausting peril of unbelief?

The pertinent question is whether you can walk where others have failed to even stand?

Can you walk where many have failed to even sit?

I want to take some time to look at the nature and scope of walking:

1: Walking is not a position, but rather a transition! 

               The difference between a "position" and a "transition".....

A position is informed by a tendency of being stationary! While on the other hand a transition is characterised by movement and momentum!

A man who walks can never be where he was yesterday, simply because walking displaces someone with respect to distance and geography!

With each day that you continue to walk, you get closer to your divine destiny - walking can never be backwards!

Walking has no pace - in other words, no man can dictate the rate at which you ought to walk, simply because walking is not a competition. 

We all walk differently yet what is of importance is that we all reach our respective destinations, irrespective of who began and who was the last to begin!

Lastly, it is the nature and not the length of the walk that matters!

When you walk with God, the manner in which you walk is determined by your attitude towards the journey - Begin to take your journey with God seriously and you will reach greater heights never before explored by any man!

 by 

Ev N Buthelezi

Living above the flood waters

Scripture Reference:

 

Genesis 6:1 - 9:17

No wound is beyond healing,no pain is everlasting and nobody remains a perpetual slave to failure,sickness and depression!

It is in the darkest moments of your life,that God unveils the greatest plans He has in store for you.Those plans may find you broken,they may find you frail and beyond the point of no faith - nevertheless,there is nothing that can destroy you without it getting prior approval from you!

There is something great that God wants to do in your life  - it does not depend on the presence of other individuals,nor does it have to be confirmed by them!

Trials may have battered you and left you without hope in tomorrow,you may have passed through a painful experience in your past - perhaps you are finding it difficult to reconcile your love for God,in relation to where you have been?

When the dreams once cherished and held dear, lay lifeless,as remnants of a shattered soul - bound by guilt and despair,self pity and imposed fear - God remains present when the presence of other things is stuck in our past.

Today,take a conscious decision to live above the flood waters. 

Where your vessel can sail above the storms of life,when all else is ravaged by failure -
above the temporal failures of life and the life threatening conditions of sin,it is not too late to construct your ark.

Build in due time - on your knees with a prayerful life you can stand taller than the shadows that intimidate progress and personal development!

Let God direct your ship,let Him ensure that it stays afloat,when life is moved from surface to deep waters - your safety and that of your family can be guaranteed only in Jesus Christ.

God bless you

Ev N Buthelezi

Divine Purpose...in spite of what has been!

Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord,"plans to prosper you and not to harm you,plans to give you hope and a future."

God says,"For I".He does not say "For they"!

Your life is governed by divine destiny not destructive destiny-God's purpose for your life weighs far more than the hideous intentions of your foes!

Plans you cannot now comprehend,have been strategicaly put in place-They are not subject to man's approval!

God's purpose for your life is deeper than any pain you may have experienced in the pit of self pity and shame!

These plans are one dimensional,i.e:

*They are designed to form your content and later inform your context!
*They are designed to ensure that no harm,human/demonic befalls you!
*They are designed to create,facilitate and sustain your progress!
*They are designed to reveal and prepare you for your divine assignment!

Live within God's purpose for your life,stop being bound by the bonds of visionlessness and apathy!

Your reason for living is deeper than the trials the enemy has thrown your way!

God's plans for you are not resolutions but objectives!
Covenant bound and promise secured,your life is not a series of accidental occurences-every blessing is deliberate!

Today,reconsider your reason for living,in relation to the divine plans that God has for your life!

Blessings

Ev N Buthelezi
071 175 1724

Beyond the portals of logic

Dear Friends

In a world ever changing,defined by inconsistency and spiritual lethargy-Briefly consider this passage:

Hebrews 11:6

"But without faith it is impossible to please Him..."

Faith infiltrates the dimension of impossibility,it ventures into thresholds previously unoccupied by logic.

Yet without faith,our lives rotate around the axis of routine and fear.Dreams perish and life becomes governed by a habitual state of visionlessness.

Without faith,what is tangible and material speaks louder than what is divine and eternal-Locked up in despair,we define ourselves by what is on us,rather than in us.

Faith turns impracticalities into achievables,doubt and despair are rendered impotent at the hands of faith.

Yet without faith,we may never please God!

I challenge you today to stop living a life of perpetual and consistent defeat!

Get your house in order!

Exercise faith as a daily tool not just a pseudo spiritual tendency!

This year,reconstruct the broken walls of your:

*Family
*Finances
*Relationships
*Health
*Work
*Education

Use faith to live an extraordinarily Spirit led life-Let this day usher you into a new season,a season of living "beyond the portals of logic"!

You may not academicaly explain your desires,they may seem illogical,but faith operates where logic dares not tread!

Often we let fear rule over faith,our lives become marred by social insecurity because they are defined by spiritual inconsistency!

Start living by faith and let your spouse see an improved you this year,let your children find comfort in knowing that they have a parent who finds comfort in God!

May God bless you!

Ev N Buthelezi
071 175 1724

Of Empty buckets and Resourceful wells!

Consider Solomon's words:

Proverbs 20:5

"The purposes of a man's heart are deep waters,but a man of understanding draws them out."

Anyone can look into a well full of water,but only those equipped with buckets can draw the water out.Anyone can look at life from the convenience of a bird's eye view,but only the empowered can fly down and become an active part of their daily living.

You can only draw out water from a well if you have capacity-That capacity is provided by your bucket,however even the bucket itself cannot draw out all the water at the same time.

Life requires you to find a bucket,big enough only to fill your purposes in relation to the capacity your bucket can carry!

Find the well that keeps your dreams,goals and desires-Move from being an observer and assume the position of a doer-With your bucket in your hands and a tight rope-You can draw out of life,the necessities,imperatives and critical resources needed to fill your life with meaning and substance!

1:Every well keeps water-But the water is far more essential than the container that keeps it-Stop admiring the container,begin to see value in the content.

2:You will need capacity to draw out your goals-A bucket,not a teaspoon,will help capacitate your vision!

3:Your heart is not bottomless-Nor will you find an unlimited well:Consequently, learn to master the restrictions of your desires-dream within the confines of possibility.It is no use to dream of possessing the whole ocean when all you have is a bucket that can barely fill a basin!

4:Understanding is the bucket that draws out your goals and aspirations-Without understanding,you become foolish and convenient in areas where you should employ strategy and reason!

God bless you.

Ev N Buthelezi
071 175 1724

Purpose,Power,Provision and Vision

Philippians 4:13

"I can do all things through Him who strengthens me"

No birth is accidental or merely for the sake of filling one more digit on a government census!

For every birth there is a divine purpose greater than the method through which the birth became possible.With purpose is needed the power to realise and fulfill it,in conjunction with the divine provision needed to materialize vision.

Without God directing your footsteps,you become a victim of circumstances and always at the receiving end of negative consequences!

For everyone who feels that they are not able,find your purpose and through it you will be enabled only if you are willing to disable all the necessary cables that connnect you to a weak source of power.

Education,money and fame are all good and well,but without your divine purpose you succeed at being what you have not been called to be-Consequently the blessings you have turn into curses because emotionally they leave you incomplete and yearning for meaning and direction!

Find your purpose and accesse the divine power platform to be enabled to bring the due provision to materialize your vision.

Blessings

Nhlanhla Buthelezi

The battlefield is waiting Part 2

1 Samuel 17:33

"Saul replied,"You are not able to go against this Philistine and fight him,for you are still a youth,and he a man of war from his youth"

Saul uttered these words to a sheepish looking David.

Saul was indeed correct-David was not able......but God was.

When we are not able,God makes us capable only if we are willing to be available.David became capable only because he was available.

Avail yourself this day and let God enable you to stand before giants that view you as incapable of victory.

There are many Sauls today,who tell you what you are capable and not capable of doing-who judge you based on how you look and how heavy you weigh,today God wants to refocus your coordinates.

Shift you from being undermined and tolerated,to being respected and celebrated!

Do not worry about your capabilities,just ensure your absolute availability-God will take it from there.

Go,you little David,for the battlefield awaits your arrival.


Evangelist N Buthelezi

The Battlefield is waiting!

1 Samuel 17

When was the last time you faced your Giant?

Often we have a tendency of running away from our Giants!David shows us that Giants fall at the feet of those who fall at the feet of God!

He did not need a sword nor did he utilize a shield-With a simple staff in his hand,a bag of stones and a sling,History was made at a battle where the unexpected became the evident and the expected became the tested!

Go and face your giant!

Are you suffering from Alcoholism?Drug abuse?Pornography?Fornication?

There is hope for those who live on their knees when the rest live on their feet!

The battlefield is waiting for you to face your Giant,but you cannot face what you refuse to confront!

Goliath made History not by being big and fearsome but by being the only Giant to fall at the sandals of a keeper of sheep!

God will use things greater than you,to reveal the depth of potential inherent within you!
The battle is the Lord's and He will deliver your Giant into your hands-Take heart,the best is yet to come!

Standing when all else seems to be falling.

No man can fail to get up,without first failing to stay up!People fail to get up simply because they first failed to stay up.If your feet are firmly grounded,there will be no reason for you to use your hands in attempts to get up,once fallen.However,the grace of God is such that it works best in those who are failing to get up,without condemning them for failing to stay up.If you have experienced a moral failure,you can find a new position,only by exposing your condition.No patient can experience healing if they continually seek to run away from the physician.Your fall will be completed by incomplete prayers.Your refusal to pray is the fuel that speeds up your inability to get up!Do you feel overwhelmed by your failure?Do you feel depressed by publicly known faults?Guess what my friend?There is plenty of room at the Cross,where you can find new meaning and zest for life,a place where you can stand firm and confident,when all else seems to be crumbling,in a world that is uncertain,there is certainty only in Christ Jesus.Are you a struggling alcoholic?Serial fornicator?Consistent drug user?Do not allow yourself to bury yourself,rather let self die by unselfishly giving your hopeless life into the hands of a God that can reshape you and grant you access to the peace of mind your weakness prevented you from experiencing.

1:Staying on your feet requires you to daily fall on your knees,if you do not fall on your knees in prayer,you are bound to fall on your destiny in shame!
2:When you have fallen into failure,do not neglect to pray-prayer will pick you up in a time when no one wants to lay their hands on you!
3:God is considered about your willingness to get up more than people are considered about your failure to stay up!

Lastly,let us consider a biblical text to get some strength for daily Living.

Jude 1:24

"Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling,and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,To God our Saviour,who alone is wise,be glory and majesty,dominion and power,both now and forever more-Amen"

Take heart,God loves you and there is nothing you can do about it!

Welcome Note

Welcome to the official Blog of Nhlanhla Buthelezi. Life will never be the same again!