By Nature

Apostle Grace Lubega

2 Peter 1:4 (AMP); By means of these He has bestowed on us His precious and exceedingly great promises, so that through them you may escape [by flight] from the moral decay (rottenness and corruption) that is in the world because of covetousness (lust and greed), and become sharers (partakers) of the divine nature.

There are things that work inherently in us by reason of the nature we carry. The Bible says that we are partakers of the divine nature. Divinity is in your blood, your DNA is of the God gene. Hallelujah!

In this understanding, we no longer believe for the things that are natural to us.

For example,I cannot believe to walk when I have two properly functioning legs and can walk. I cannot believe to breathe because breathing comes naturally to me. I cannot believe to blink because it is automatic in my nature that I do so.

Like there are things that are natural to the physical man, there are also things that are natural to the Spirit man created in Christ Jesus.

A man who has understood the functioning of nature is above belief, it becomes knowledge.

For you child of God, it is by your nature that you heal; by your nature that you demonstrate power, it is by your nature that you cast out demons.

When you understand this, you don’t need to lay hands on people to heal them or for deliverance to manifest; your presence in a place is enough.

What a glory!

FURTHER STUDY: Ephesians 2:10, 2 Corinthians 3:6

GOLDEN NUGGET:

It is by your nature that you heal; by your nature that you demonstrate power, it is by your nature that you cast out demons.

PRAYER: My loving father, I thank you for this Word. Thank you for who you have made me to be. For I am not begotten by the will of man or of flesh and blood but I am begotten of God. I live my life in the glory of a child of the Most High. It is natural for me to demonstrate power! It is natural for me to be wise! It is natural for me to forgive! I walk in the fullness of this life. To the glory of your name. Amen!

The Humility In Revelation

Apostle Grace Lubega

Galatians 2:2 (KJV); And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain.

Church history is full of accounts of the wide spread of doctrines that were never submitted to men of reputation.

All it took was for someone to be excited by a false light and unsound teaching would sometimes spread like a wildfire.

This birthed extremes in the times of revival.

Our theme scripture points us to the wisdom that creates the much needed balance.

It is important to submit some of these things to men of reputation, that is, men grounded in the faith and have gone ahead of you in the things of the Spirit.

The Bible says Paul “went up by revelation.”

The Amplified version expounds it this way; “I went because it was specially and divinely revealed to me that I should go, and I put before them the Gospel [declaring to them that] which I preach among the Gentiles. However, [I presented the matter] privately before those of repute, [for I wanted to make certain, by thus at first confining my communication to this private conference] that I was not running or had not run in vain [guarding against being discredited either in what I was planning to do or had already done].”

It is maturity to submit what you carry to men of reputation, lest you run in vain.

This wisdom will protect you from casting pearls to swine. It will preserve you from “the rending” by “swine” when what you share is trampled upon; it will teach you to weigh the spirits of the men to whom you minister and know what they can take or cannot take in any particular time. Hallelujah!

FURTHER STUDY: Matthew 7:6, Acts 15:2

GOLDEN NUGGET:

It is maturity to submit what you carry to men of reputation, lest you run in vain. This wisdom will protect you from casting pearls to swine. It will preserve you from “the rending” by “swine” when what you share is trampled upon; it will teach you to weigh the spirits of the men to whom you minister and know what they can take or cannot take in any particular time.

PRAYER: My loving father, I thank you for your Word for this day. I thank you for this wisdom by which we minister. I walk by this pattern because it is not just divine instruction but it is after the true spirit of revelation. In this wisdom, I can never run in vain. To the glory of your name. Amen.

Moved By Faith

Apostle Grace Lubega

2 Corithians 5:7 (KJV); For we walk by faith, not by sight.

The Apostle of Faith, Smith Wigglesworth once said, “I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am moved by what I believe.“

There are Christians who are not moved by what they see or feel but they forget to be moved by what they believe.

It is good not to be moved by what you see, feel or hear but you ought to go the extra mile and be MOVED by faith.

Some people treat faith as a passive denial of what the Word does not agree with. They reject evil reports, which is a good thing.

However, faith acts! Faith is visible, it can be seen. This is why, of the men that brought their paralytic friend, the Bible says that Jesus saw their faith (Mark 2:5).

These are the works of faith. Of these, the Bible says that faith without works is dead.

Faith should propel you into action: to jump out out of the sick bed, to laugh when you hear a bad report, to swim against the tide, to stand when you are expected to fall and to dance when you are expected to mourn.

FURTHER STUDY: James 2:26, Mark 2:5

GOLDEN NUGGET:

Faith acts! Faith is visible, it can be seen.

PRAYER: Father, I thank you for this Word. I am full of faith and walk in its patterns every day. I don’t just believe, I live what I believe. Faith moves me to do the impossible and to reject every report of the enemy. In this understanding, I live and walk in victory. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Greatest Commandment

Apostle Grace Lubega

Matthew 22:37-38 (KJV); Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. 

There is a place in the walk of salvation where one desires the presence of God because it is a good thing to be desired; more like a young child who despite having had a heavy meal still gets excited when offered candy.

This child doesn’t want candy because she is hungry. She wants candy because candy is a wonderful thing to be had.

But there is a place in God where one’s desire for God is not merely a good thing to have in your collection of Christian attributes, for people to say, “Oh that sister loves God.”

There is a place in God where your desire for Him is what is keeping you alive; a place where walking with Him is your lifeblood; where His presence is indeed the air that you breathe. It is not just a song you sing, “this is the air I breathe” but a consistent reality of your existence on the earth.

In this place, your desire for the presence is His desire for it in you. It is not you hungering for Him but Him in you hungering.

God wants to draw you to this place in Him, that indeed, your entire soul, heart and mind are consumed by this desire. Hallelujah!

FURTHER STUDY: Psalms 42:1-2, Psalms 63:1-2

GOLDEN NUGGET:
There is a place in God where your desire for Him is what is keeping you alive; a place where walking with Him is your lifeblood; where His presence is indeed the air that you breathe. It is not just a song you sing, “this is the air I breathe” but a consistent reality of your existence on the earth.

PRAYER: My God, I thank you for this Word. Thank you because your desires are my desires. I am hungry for your presence Lord in every place that I am. I am conscious that you are always with me and I open my spirit to this reality daily. Thank you because your presence in my life multiplies every day as I yield to the understanding that I am consistently with you and in you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

All You Need Is An Encounter

Apostle Grace Lubega

Acts 10:1-4 (KJV); There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band, A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway. He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius.  And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.

There are many days in your life as a Christian when you will pray, attend overnights, lunch hours, morning glories but there is that one day where the lord gives you that ONE ENCOUNTER with him that will change your life forever.

Our theme scripture tells us of Cornelius who continually prayed to God but when he encountered God, his life never remained the same again.

There may even be moments when you will experience multiple surges of the Spirit that may add to the course of your destiny. However, there will always be that one experience that will define you.

That experience will open you up to everything true in the spiritual realm and from that day you will have the choice to either walk therein or not to.

Experiences are good. In them, God ministers and instructs us in our course. However, an experience may merely touch you yet not change you.

An encounter cannot leave you the same.

Moses was a normal man, looking after Jethro’s sheep. When he encountered God, His life changed and we remember him as the great leader and law giver of Israel.

Abraham was a normal man, when he encountered God, he became a father of nations.

Paul was a legalistic religious zealot, when he encountered God, he became the master builder of the New Testament.

I urge you to desire more than just experiences in God but a true encounter with Him because behind every encounter is mandate, assignment and divine purpose.

FURTHER STUDY: Exodus 3:1-12, Acts 9

GOLDEN NUGGET:

Desire more than just experiences in God but a true encounter with Him because behind every encounter is mandate, assignment and divine purpose.

PRAYER: My loving God, I thank you for this Word. Thank you because I know that you seek to draw me to deeper places in you. My Lord, I know that no man can see you and live but I also know that only dead men see you. So I yield my heart and spirit, to the true places of spiritual death because father I want to see you. I am ready for more. I am ready for deeper vision. I am ready for that which will consume my heart, body and soul. I thank you for it is done. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

In The School Of Prayer

Apostle Grace Lubega

Luke 11:1 (KJV); And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.

The first lesson for any one who seeks to give themselves to the ministry of prayer is this, “Lord teach me to pray.”

Prayer should never be a self orchestrated effort to prove one’s ability; it ought to be Spirit taught.

There are people who pray because they have seen other people pray; they pace and move about in prayer, not for any particular reason but because they saw other men do it.

There are people who pray because they read about prayer in a book and it showed them certain formulas, like “ACTS”( Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication).

But have you ever sought to cultivate a life of SPIRIT TAUGHT PRAYER?

Prayer-less praying is Spirit-less praying.

The Holy Spirit is our helper; and, He is always available to instruct and teach us the patterns of prayer. He is the Spirit of grace and supplication (Zechariah 12:10).

“Lord teach me to pray” is a place of humility in the understanding that it is all about Him.

“Lord teach me to pray” is the knowledge that prayer is a Grace issue and that the sufficiency is of Him and not of us.

Praise Him!

FURTHER STUDY: Zechariah 12:10, Romans 8:26

GOLDEN NUGGET:
The first lesson for any one who seeks to give themselves to the ministry of prayer is this, “Lord teach me to pray.”

PRAYER: Father, I thank you for your Word for today. My God I am grateful for your heart towards me that is always willing to instruct me in the things of the Spirit. I thank you because you instruct and teach me to pray. More than ever before, today I humble myself as a student in your school of prayer, eagerly learning the patterns of prayer that bring results. To the glory of your name. Amen.

A Meek And Quiet Spirit

Apostle Grace Lubega

1 Peter 3:4 (KJV); But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.

Silence is the opportunity for God to speak to the heart of a man.

But when we speak of silence and the places of solitude, many think of it as the absence of noise and sound as picked by one’s physical senses. In other words a quiet room, a lonely mountainside etc. These places are good for retreats when we seek solitude.

However, there is a deeper place of silence and solitude which can be achieved even in the noisiest of places: It is the quietness and meekness of your spirit.

God, in our theme scripture has revealed to us that meekness of spirit is of great price, immense value and immeasurable worth to Him.

It is possible, child of God, to sit in a quiet room and yet not have a meek and quiet spirit before God. The Greek word for quiet herein is undisturbed, without anxiety.

There are people who wait on God with anxious hearts. They are in places of physical solitude but are preoccupied with the demands of every day life.

Their hearts are raging storms of worry which make their moments with God a piecemeal apportioning of time to satisfy their consciences that they have been with God yet in fact they have not.

Saints, when you exercise your Spirit to be quiet before Him, you will be amazed by how much you will be opened up to the things He seeks to minister to you.

May His precious Holy Spirit lead you in this grace.

FURTHER STUDY: Matthew 6:6, 1 John 2:27

GOLDEN NUGGET:
There is a deeper place of silence and solitude which can be achieved even in the noisiest of places. It is the quietness and meekness of your spirit.

PRAYER: Father God, I thank you for this precious wisdom. Thank you for the things that build my spirit and keep me in the consistency of communion. My heart is yielded to you everyday to hear, to see and to feel. Wherever I am God, I carry the consciousness that you are speaking to me because my spirit is quiet before you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Lessons In Virtue: A Praying Mother

Apostle Grace Lubega

1 Samuel 2:1 (AMP) HANNAH PRAYED, and said, My heart exults and triumphs in the Lord; my horn (my strength) is lifted up in the Lord. My mouth is no longer silent, for it is opened wide over my enemies, because I rejoice in Your salvation.

Most of the times, when we talk about Hannah’s prayer, we refer to the one she made prior to conceiving Samuel.

But today, I want to point you to another of Hannah’s prayers, recorded in 1 Samuel 2, after the Lord had given her a son.

Hannah in her deep gratitude to God speaks of how the Lord gives strength to his king and exalts the horn of his anointed(1 Samuel 2:10).

The beauty of this is that Israel had not yet expressed its desire for a king but a praying mother saw this before hand; she also had the knowledge that her son would be instrumental in this great kingdom milestone.

It is an undisputed fact that Samuel was very important to the kingship: he anoints Saul, he is the voice of God to Saul’s throne. When Saul is disqualified, he anoints David and even after his death, he is considered too important that his spirit has to be invoked to give counsel to the king. What a man!

It all started with a praying mother, who did not only ask for a child but one with purpose. She looked past her time to when the nation would desire a king and understood her part as the mother of the man who would be qualified enough to lay hands on the first king and on God’s ultimate choice of king.

Children are every parent’s opportunity to change the world. So dear parent, position yourself in the great equation of world change. Look past only having children, look to having children who will be the next influencers of influencers.

See your child as the one whom the presidents and the kings of this world will seek counsel of, even before that child is born. See past now to the future needs of the nations and place your child in that equation. Hallelujah!

FURTHER STUDY: Proverbs 22:6, Psalms 127:3

GOLDEN NUGGET:

Children are every parent’s opportunity to change the world. So dear parent, position yourself in the great equation of world change. Look past only having children, look to having children who will be the next influencers of influencers.

PRAYER: Father, I thank you for this Word. Thank you for the great responsibility of parenthood. I know what it requires of me and execute it with diligence and the guidance of the Holy Spirit. My children are for signs and wonders, they guard the gates and are a crown to me all the days of my life. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

God, At The Center Of It All

Apostle Grace Lubega

Proverbs 23:26 (KJV); My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways

God desires your heart.

But what does it really mean to give God your heart?

The Message version of our theme scripture says, “My son, give me your attention.”

To give God your heart is to above all things give him your attention, to genuinely make him the focus of your life, your priority.

The devil has deliberately made Christians BUSY! Some never realise it but they are actually in bondage to the things they do, which have taken priority over the time they ought to give to the Almighty God.

Even if it is service to Him, you must remember that God is more interested in His ministrations to you than your Ministry to Him. Like Mary, never forget that this is the one thing that is needful.

The scriptures have taught us that any man may plan his life, only God gives him the ability to live it(Proverbs 16:9 MSG).

So, make the choice to look past yourself to God. Ask the pertinent questions that are about Him and not just what you need. What is His desire? What does He want to do? How does he want to use you?

Allow Him to break you and bend you for a relationship. Give God your heart; give Him your attention.

FURTHER STUDY: Luke 10:27, Acts 17:27

GOLDEN NUGGET:

Make the choice to look past yourself to God. Ask the pertinent questions that are about Him and not just what you need. What is His desire? What does He want to do? How does he want to use you? Allow Him to break you and bend you for a relationship. Give God your heart; give Him your attention.

PRAYER: Loving Father, thank you for who you are to me. For the many things you are that I cannot put into mere words, I thank you. This day Lord, I place this heart of mine on the altar and await your consuming fire. Deal with me, deal in me Lord. That truly when I say “Lord you have my heart”, they will be more than just words but a conviction palpitating with the heartbeat of truth. In Jesus name. Amen.

Grace The True Gospel

Apostle Grace Lubega

John 1:16 – 17 (KJV); And of his fullness have all we received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

When we talk about TRUTH in it’s absoluteness, it can never be TRUTH if it doesn’t depict its source from the love God has toward man kind, revealed in Christ Jesus.

The Bible says in our theme scripture “the law was given by Moses but grace and truth came by Jesus”.

Firstly it’s important to note that Moses was simply a giver of the law. The Bible says the law was given by Moses, it was not a part of his person and identity.

On the other hand Jesus didn’t only give us Grace and Truth, Grace and Truth came by him. This was not something he passed on to us because he thought we needed it, it was part of the assurance that He had come because He is the embodiment of Grace and Truth.

The number one guarantee of His presence in your life as a Christian is the evident display of grace and truth in your life.

There can never be an establishment of any truth if that truth doesn’t depict its relevance and source from Grace, because Grace is the mother of all [present] Truth, and it is the true gospel.

FURTHER STUDY: Titus 2:11, Galatians 2:11-14

GOLDEN NUGGET:

There can never be an establishment of any truth if that truth doesn’t depict its relevance and source from Grace, because Grace is the mother of all [present] Truth, and it is the true gospel.

PRAYER: My loving Father, I thank you for your Grace. It is more than just a doctrine, it is your person my Lord. I stand steadfast in its understanding and I am established in its precepts. Every day I grow in this present truth because it is the bedrock of the new covenant. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Of Faithful Men

Apostle Grace Lubega

2 Timothy 2:2 (KJV): And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men who shall be able to teach others also.

When it comes to ministry towards the saints, there are variations and distinctions in the levels of understanding of the people we share and minister to.

Over the years, I have learnt that there are certain things that God will reveal to you that cannot be shared or committed to just anybody because those very things require faithfulness from the men you share and commit them to.

Paul, in our theme scripture, admonishes Timothy to commit the things he has heard of him among many witnesses to “faithful men who shall be able to teach others also” because when a man is faithful, that man has a grace at work in his life to teach others also.

What validates your faithfulness to God is the grace to teach others what you do. God has entrusted and committed many things to you but how faithful have you been in those things?

You may be gifted in prophecy, teaching or the working of miracles but have you taught others to do the same?

Sadly, we are living in a generation where men exalt gifts above faithfulness yet it should be faithfulness above the gift.

When a man is faithful, he can teach others but a man gifted yet without faithfulness can not teach others. That is why some people can make the lame walk by reason of the gift but can not teach others how to make lame men walk.
Some can prophecy by the gift but they can not teach others how to prophecy and that is an imbalance in the spirit .

Be gifted but also have an ability to teach; and this grace to teach functions in faithful and not merely gifted men .

FURTHER STUDY: 2 Timothy 3:10, 1 Corinthians 4:2

GOLDEN NUGGET:

What validates your faithfulness to God is the grace to teach others what you do.

PRAYER: Father God, I thank you for who you are to me. You are the centre of my life, the reason I live and breathe. Thank you for the things you have entrusted me. I thank you too for the grace to teach others these very things. I am a faithful steward of your household. I am exercised in this reality every day. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Things That Make Ministers: The Joab Spirit

Apostle Grace Lubega

1 Kings 2:5 (KJV); Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner, and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet.

Joab was a son of Zeruiah, David’s sister, a captain of David’s army. Sadly, through his entire time of service to David, he seemed to be a continuous burden and a cause of heartache.

At one point, David revealingly cries, “And I am this day weak, though anointed king; and these men the sons of Zeruiah be too hard for me…”(2 Samuel 3:39).

When you trace the life of Joab, you realise that it is he who kills Abner with whom David sought reconciliation and thus sheds the blood of war in peace(2 Samuel 3:27-30).

It is Joab who kills Absalom when David had given clear instructions that Absalom be dealt with gently(2 Samuel 18:14-15).

It is Joab who kills Amasa captain of the host when he was appointed to replace Joab(2 Samuel 20).

Every minister ought to examine themselves against this truth. Joab is a typical example of men who serve for long in ministry, never leave but consistently defy the principles of authentic ministry and service.

We realise that for years, Joab was the captain of the host but he was never considered among David’s thirty valiant and honourable men( 2 Samuel 23:8-39).

He served a man all his life, but the question remains, how did he serve? When his ministry is weighed and judged, it is found wanting.

Serve with all your heart where God has placed you but always remember that faithfulness is not judged by the length of time you have been in a place but by the heart with which you served; the burdens you lifted rather than increased; the labours you added to rather than subtracted from.

FURTHER STUDY: 2 Samuel 22, (2 Samuel 3:27-30).

GOLDEN NUGGET:

Serve with all your heart where God has placed you but always remember that faithfulness is not judged by the length of time you have been in a place but by the heart with which you served; the burdens you lifted rather than increased; the labours you added to rather than subtracted from.

PRAYER: My Lord, I thank you for this Word. Thank you for the opportunity to serve and for where you have placed me in ministry. What an honour to serve the Almighty God! What a privilege! Daily you teach me the patterns of genuine service, integrity of spirit, purity of heart and the many things that make me a true minister. I am committed and available to you God. In Jesus’ name. Amen.