Opening the Doors of Blessings; How? Through Giving

Malachi1vs6-14, Malachi 3vs6-12 (Giving the BEST and Not ROBBING God)

Question: Being a parent, how would you feel if your child who now has a high paying job and never buys you anything? Maybe only sends some money once in a while usually when you have asked for it to cater for a certain problem.

The answer from most of you is hurt, why then do we hurt God by giving Him what we do not want or the remainder of our fortunes. The same way one is hurt is the same way our Father is also hurt. Malachi 1vs8 “When you sacrifice crippled or diseased animals, is that not wrong? When we offer the coins that we do not want whilst we have notes for KFC is that not insulting God. Why do we give the last and unworthy gifts to God and not set aside offerings for our Father rather set aside the best for the Lord.

Why do we rob God, yes robbing God, some may wonder how can we rob God? Let me explain. We rob God when we do not give tithes and offerings Malachi 3vs8, it is compulsory that one give tithes. Are there consequences of robbing God? Of-course Malachi 3vs8 “You are under a curse the whole nation of you, because you are robbing me.” Give to God what belongs to Him so that you will not invite curses in your life, the Lord curses those who rob Him.

Some may not know what is tithing and offering

· Offering is something given to God as an act of worship

· Tithing is the giving to God of one-tenth of what one earns

By tithing you open the doors of 1) Blessing Malachi 3vs10

2) Protection from the devourer vs11

3) The goodness of the Lord will be seen upon your life vs12

If you want to walk in the fullness of Blessing, it is not enough to just write a cheque and throw it in the offering basket. Rather set aside the best for the Lord and not give Him the leftovers or what you do not want to use, give whole heartedly. Take your extra time and seek the Lord over your tithe. Do not be like Adam who cut himself from the blessing of the Lord by eating the fruit (Genesis 3). He robbed God and blamed his wife for it. Do not blame it on anyone or even on your parents for sending you less money. No matter how much it is take 1/10 and give it to the Lord, it is your responsibility.

“Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it” Malachi 3vs10. When you begin to tithe that is when you open the doors of blessings in your life. Genesis 26 talks about the blessing that was upon Isaac during the time of famine in Canaan, he was the only one who prospered and had abundance whilst people died from hunger. You can be the Isaac of this nation, whilst the recession is at peak you will have abundance and people will be amazed not knowing that you were obedient to the word of the Lord.

Luke 21vs1-4 Jesus considered the poor widow to have given more than anyone including the rich but she had only put 2 smaller copper coins. But Why? Because she had given out of her poverty, she sacrificed all she had and gave whole heartedly but the rich just gave the leftovers, they did not set aside the best for the Lord and were just giving because they had to and some to be seen. Do not give the Father what is not worthy to you or giving because you have to, without love or giving only to be seen and appreciated by others. Remember God is not human that He sees the outward but the inward.

In closing James 4vs17 says “Anyone who knows the good he ought to do and does not do it, sins.” The word says give offerings and tithes, now that you know it you ought to obey the word of the Lord, failing to do so is sin. We are like God so we ought to have the giving nature as that is God’s nature. Imagine he gave his only son (John 3vs16) so that you and me could be saved and have all in Christ Jesus but we struggle to give just a tenth of what you earn or offerings. It is high time you and me open our hearts and allow the nature of God to dwell in us, Give, Give and Give!

Article by Irene Mutumha

Divined Presence

Mark 16:17 talks about the signs that will follow those that believe, in His name they shall cast out demons, speak new tongues, tread upon serpents and heal the sick. At Divined Presence we understand this truth, that through Christ Jesus who died for us we are empowered to be the answer to nations by imparting the fullness of God's wisdom, knowledge and power. We believe in the demonstration of power as this completes the fullness of God in Christ likeliness and we are not ignorant of the unction for action given to us through Gods grace. Our ministry is governed by the influential words of the prophet Isaiah, in Chapter 61;

¹ “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me,
Because the LORD has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
² To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, … ”

Divined Presence aims to raise generations that will not only make an impact in this country, but in Africa and the whole world. This generation will provide the solution to the problems of many, delivering people from the bonds of the Devil, for the Lords word says He shall raise up the desolations of many generations and He shall repair the ruined cities, the Lord through “us” promises to restore the years that the enemy has stolen when we deliver people from demonic influence. We believe that Africa will be saved, through our joint effort with many others that share the same vision with us, others that proclaim liberty to the captives. Our ministry presses toward comforting those who mourn and healing the broken hearted, we reach out to people who have lost all hope and through the word of God we renew their mindset and marvel at how they are transformed in alignment with the Holy Spirit to become a people whose lives conform to the promises of God. Exercising the use of gifts credited to each one of us has become a prerequisite, through mentoring and teaching, our members have been able to not only identify their gifts but also to develop and utilize them for the bettering of society. The Healing anointing is undoubtedly in our midst, through the works of the Holy Spirit many bear witness to how the Lord has touched their lives and given them new lives spiritually, mentally and physically. In totality we emphasize on Christ likeliness and trust in the Lord to provide for our vision as he is our counselor, refuge and strength.

¹¹ For as the earth brings forth its bud, As the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth, So the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.

As Isaiah 61:11 says, the Lords righteousness will truly manifest and his praises will spring forth before all nations so is the will of Divined Presence for Africa and the whole world.

Article By Rudo Nyabadza

Spiritual Anatomy of man

(1 Thessalonians 5:23) speaks of God sanctifying our body, soul and spirit wholly. This shows that a man has a spirit, a soul and a body. Most believers tend to confuse the spirit and the soul.

Man is a spirit who has a soul and lives in a body.

1.) The Body

Genesis 2:7 says that God formed man of the dust from the ground, and when he breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, man became a living soul/being. This word (soul) is taken from the Hebrew nephesh which means man began to live bodily and mentally.

The body was created from the ground (humus) and when God breathed the breath of life (spirit), the soul was created and the body began to live.

2.) The Human Spirit

It is the spirit of man that contacts God. At conversion (when we are born of God through faith in Christ Jesus), God recreates our spirit and brings it to union with His Spirit so that we can effectively relate to Him.

God is Spirit who can only be related to through our recreated spirit, which is the candle of the Lord.

3.) The Soul

The soul is the seat house of your character. Most people when they think of a soul, see it like some force that can move around like the way angels move.

The soul is where you find the Mind, Will and Emotions of a person.

Remember the human spirit came from God, and the body from the ground. After the breath of life came into the nostrils of man, the man became a living soul.

At conversion of the spirit, that is when you are born again, the soul is not dealt with. This is why it has to be renewed through the Scriptures. (Romans 12: 1-2; James 1:21)

The body is not affected at conversion either. It will be changed into an immortal body when the Lord Jesus returns in His Glory from Heaven (1 Corinthians 15:50-54).

The body gets information from the physical world and transfers it to the soul to build the character. It does this with the aid of the 5 senses (touch, smell, sight, hearing and taste).

When you are born again, you become more inclined to the things of the Holy Spirit which come through your spirit.

The life of God then flows from your spirit to the soul, to the body and outwards, remember when Jesus said in John 7:38-39, “ He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)”

That is how it works with even healing from God.

An unbeliever takes things from the world through gratifying the flesh and neglects the spiritual things which make no sense to that person.

Dear brothers and sisters; let us not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit, because the flesh things fight what God wants us to be (Galatians 5: 16-17).

May the Peace of God and the love of our Christ Jesus be with you brothers and sisters.

Article by Sheunopa Matambo

Your life is hid in Christ

Colossians 3: 1-3 says, “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God

Gal 2:20 says, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

Gal 3:26-27 says, “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”

• The bible clearly states in Habakkuk 2:4 and Romans 1:17 that the just shall live by faith.

• What happened is that our lives were bonded with the life of Jesus on the cross. When He died, we died with Him and hence we have already served the penalty of sin, death. (Rom 6:23).

• Brothers and Sisters, the good news is that Jesus Christ has risen from death and has ascended to the right hand of God (Power) and our lives are hidden with Him. The Bible says that we are the body of Christ and He (Christ) is the Head. (1 Corinthians 12: 12-14 and Colossian 1:18)

• The truth is by faith, our life is in Christ. Remember that Adam and Eve had died spiritually and so had we (the offspring), but Jesus sacrificed His life, that we might be joint to it.

• The truth is without Jesus, we would have all died and with no hope of resurrection, but since He Has resurrected, so are we in Him. That is why Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.” (John 11:25).

1 Corinthians 2: 12-14 says, “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”

• We have been given the Spirit of God, such that He(the Spirit) teaches and reveals the things that are vague to us that are in Christ Jesus. There are so many dear brothers and sisters, for example; the promises that God gave to Abraham now apply to you also, since in Christ, you are the seed of Abraham, and heirs according to the promise. (Gal 3:26-29).

Philippians 2: 5 says, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God…”

2 Peter 1: 3-4 says, “as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

• The truth is that you are partakers of the divine nature, through the promises that are laid up for you in Christ Jesus, which make you escape corruption (decay, ruin) that is in the world through lust (longing, desire for what is forbidden, craving)

• Let us discover the promises we have in Christ by studying, meditating on the Word of God and allowing the Holy Spirit to minister to us. (Colossians 3: 1-3).

Article By Sheunopa Matambo