Turning Bareness Into Blessing

1 Samuel 1:1-10

1 There was a certain man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite [a] from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.

2 He had two wives; one was called Hannah and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.

6 And because the LORD had closed her womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her.

7 This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the LORD, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat.

10 In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the LORD.

11 And she made a vow, saying, "O LORD Almighty, if you will only look upon your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the LORD for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head."

She was ashamed. She was tormented. She was barren. Her husband tried to console her. 'You're already blessed,' he virtually told her. Yes, Hannah was a beloved wife. Hundreds of lonely, rejected women would be content with that, but not Hannah. She could know no peace until she had borne a child.
This yearning for a baby arose from within, was fuelled by her society's attitude and further intensified by her rival - her husband's second wife. Ultimately, however, I believe the pressure was from God.
'And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore. And she vowed . . . , "O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt . . . give unto thy handmaid a man child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life . . . " ' (1 Samuel 1:10-11)

It seems the Lord had long been waiting for this degree of commitment. Perhaps reaching this point sooner would have shaved years off her wait. Nonetheless, to her vow of consecration she added faith. Before any tangible sign of answered prayer 'her countenance was no more sad.'

(1 Samuel 1:18) Years of anguish fostered prayer, devotion, and now, faith. A miracle was hurtling toward this planet. (1 Samuel 1:20)

That's how God moves. Think of... Isaac, Israel, Samson, Samuel and John the Baptist were all born to women who had been barren. (Genesis 18:11; 25:21-26; Judges 13:3; 1 Samuel 1:20; Luke 1:7, 13) Barrenness forced these women to exceptional fervor in praying for conception. Little wonder that they conceived exceptional children.

They were barren, but barren for a purpose.
In what areas of your life are you experiencing bareness today?
Is it in your marriage? Have you no children? Is it in your spiritual walk? Your business? Your career? Your prayer life...does your life seem like it is headed nowhere and everything you touch dies?

Are you content to live in that kind of situation? Have you accepted that to be your lot in life? Or have you like Abraham and Sarah tried to make things happen in your own strength and understanding? Abraham took Sarah's suggestion to have a child with her servant Hagar but this was not the promised son. God is able to do that which He has promised. Though it tarries, the promise will surely come to pass.
Ending barrenness involves being intimate with the lord. God's woman turned barrenness into a blessing not by suppressing her desires but by letting it bring her to her knees and to a rare level of commitment.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION
Let the area you are experiencing bareness propel you to a new level of commitment to God


GODS PROMISE FOR TODAY
Isaiah 54:1
"Sing, O barren woman, you who never bore a child;
burst into song, shout for joy, you who were never in labor;
because more are the children of the desolate woman
than of her who has a husband," says the LORD.

Rules for Christian Households

1.Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.

2.Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.

3.Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.

4.Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged.

5.Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord.

6.Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men,

7.since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

8.Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism.

MY LOVER

If only you were to me like a brother
Then I found you outside
I would kiss your lips n no one would despite me
Lead you and bring you to my mother who taught me
I give you spiced wine to drink
The nectar of my love when your left arm is under my head
And your light arm embraces me
I cannot arouse love but it has desired

They asked “who is this coming from the desert leaning on her lover”

Under the apple tree I roused you
N placed a seal over your heart
Like a seal on you arm
For love is stronger than death
Jealously unyielding as the grave
It burns like blazing fire
N no many water can quench love
Neither river can wash it away
Nor all the wealth of a house for love,
It would be utterly scorned

They said they will built a wall of silver
N if a door, enclose with panel of cedar

I am the wall n my breasts are like a tower
Thus I have become on his eyes
Like one bringing contentment
His vineyard to give
All who dwell in the garden?
With friends in attendance
Let me hear you voice


Come away my lover and be like a gazelle
Or like a young stag
On the spice-laden mountain.

WHAT DRIVES YOU?

Towards the end of last year the price of fuel had sky rocketed to about 105 ksh per liter. It was during that season that some innovative Kenyans were featured in the local news because of a cheaper form of fuel they had come up with. These men were actually manufacturing bio- diesel from some seeds and selling it at a cheaper price and it was a hit among matatu drivers. I wonder what became of them now that the price of fuel has since gone down. We are so conditioned to think that cars can only run on petrol or diesel. Did you know there are cars on this planet that can run on water, solar, gas like the one you use to cook, bio diesel, paraffin, oil…..
What about you? What drives you? What source of power propels you? What gives you the strength to wake up every morning and do it all over again?


As Christians we live under grace and not under the law. We enjoy a certain freedom of choice and commitment.
1 Corinthians 6:12 (New International Version)
12"Everything is permissible for me"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me"—but I will not be mastered by anything.


Paul reminds us that our choices and commitments while freely made do not always bring freedom. Often they overpower us. We no longer posses our possessions, they posses us and they become the reason we do what we do.
As Christians the only one who should power our life is Jesus Christ. Without Christ we should be like a car on an empty tank and not move a single inch.
Have you ever asked yourself how much is enough where this other things are concerned?
Where do you draw the line where the blessing is concerned?
If money was not the problem, how many suits would be enough? How many houses and cars would be enough?

If you had your dream job, how many hours of work would be enough?
What drives you this morning? Is it the blessor or the blessing?
Are you consumed with Christ or are you consumed by the blessing that comes with being affiliated with Christ?
There are many engines that can use various sources of power. Petrol diesel water gas paraffin bio-diesel……
As for me I have determined that as for me, my engine will only be powered by Christ power and that’s why my fuel tank reads Christ only

Be it unto me

chorus

Be it unto me

According to your Word

According to your promises

I can stand secure

Carve upon my heart

The truth that sets me free

According to your Word O Lord

Be it unto me

You promised your word

will deliverLord,

we believe it's true

You promised us joy like a river

Lord we receive it from you

These things you have spoken

And you're bringing to pass

This world's disappearing

But your word will last

Chorus

You promised to carry our sorrowsLord,

we believe it's true

You promised unending tomorrows

Lord we receive them from you

You be our provider

In your word it's revealed

And by the strikes that you've bowed

Lord we have been healed

Chorus

Who am I

Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth

Would care to know my name

Would care to feel my hurt

Who am I, that the bright an morning star

Would choose to light the way

For my ever wandering heart

Not because of who I am

But because of what you've done

Not because of what I've done

But because of who you are

I am a flower quickly fading

Here today and gone tomorrow

A wave tossed in the ocean

A vapor in the wind

Still you hear me when I'm calling

Lord, you catch me when I'm falling

And you've told me who I am

I am yours, I am yours

Who am I, that the eyes that see my sin

Would look on me with love and watch me rise again

Who am I, that the voice that calmed the sea

Would call out through the rain

And calm the storm in me

I am yours

Whom shall I fear

Whom shall I fear

'Cause I am yours

I am yours

my prayer

A Shadow In Your Light Lyrics

Let me be a shadow of Your light

Just a small reflection of a greater love

Let me be a shadow in Your light

That falls on the lost and the lonely

All that I am I lay at the cross

No sacrifice too great a cost

So down on my knees

Lord I ask You please

That falls on the lost and the lonely

Let me be a shadow in Your light

"Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer"

LAZINESS THE PATH TO RUIN

Proverbs 24:30-34 (New International Version)

30. I went past the field of the sluggard,past the vineyard of the man who lacks judgment;
31. thorns had come up everywhere,the ground was covered with weeds, and the stone wall was in ruins.
32. I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson from what I saw:
33.A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest-
34. and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man.

In this day and age, thieves have become very hi-tech and they break in when they feel the time is right. But security experts have also gone high-tech and they tell us there are many things you can do as a property owner to keep the time from ever being right for thieves to strike.
In the same way, there are many things that you can do to keep off poverty and financial need, but not if you are lazy

Proverbs 19:15
Laziness induces deep sleep and a lazy person will go hungry

Now am not suggesting that all poverty is as a result of laziness, but laziness does bring sudden disaster. Many people are looking for jobs but they are not ready to work
Notice the lazy mans vineyard which requires careful and steadfast labor, shows every sign of neglect. It is overgrown with thorns and thistles and its protective stone wall is broken down. As a result it’s both unproductive and vulnerable to attack
Does that give a good description of your life? What areas of your life are showing neglect? Is it your career, your family, your finances, your health or your relationship with God?
Are you taking good care of yourself health wise? Remember your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost. Are you lazy when it comes to sharing the gospel with others? Are you always giving excuses? Lazy people are masters at giving excuses. When was the last time you told someone about the love of Christ?
What about your home? Is everything in its place or is everything everywhere?
In what areas of your life have you allowed thorns and thistles to grow because you have been lazy?
Remember if you are lazy, poverty will come like a robber and need like a bandit

PRACTICAL RESPONSE
Laziness= poverty
Fold up your sleeves and get to work

From rags to riches

A story of Agnes Njoki prosperity.

Growing up in a typical rural set-up in Nyeri, Agnes Njoki worked hard in school so that she could achieve her childhood dream of becoming a professor of business management. However, her dream was shattered when, after scoring 536 in her KCPE examinations, her parents, Zakayo Ndung’u and Julia Wanuri, could not afford to take her to secondary school.
The fourth-born child in family of six children, Agnes, a former pupil of Mihuti Primary School, was admitted to two provincial secondary schools, Bishop Gatimu Girls in Murang’a and St Mary’s in Thika. But her parents, who could barely feed the family, could not afford the fees.
Aged only 13 but with a big vision, Agnes packed her few belongings and left her home in Mucharage village in Mukurwe-ini for Nairobi to look for a job as a house-girl. Her first job paid Sh800 a month. That was in 1995.
Today, Agnes, only 27, is a respected businesswoman with a well-patronised hair salon and four matatus plying the Mukurwe-ini- Nairobi route. The matatus are worth about Sh3.5 million and the salon about Sh1 million. Her monthly income is about Sh350,000. She pays herself Sh70,000 a month. She also pays Sh90,000 a semester for her only brother, Charles Kihara, who is studying in a private university in Uganda.
She employs 18 people including drivers conductors, hairdressers and a house-girl to take care of her seven-year-old daughter. She also has attendants who man her beauty products and DVD stalls. When she started working as a housegirl, her new employers, a born-again couple, Simon Nduati and his wife, Nellius, started her off on a Sh800 salary.
She worked for the Nduatis for one-and-half years then requested her employer to allow her to take a hairdressing classes at nearby salons once through with the daily routine. The couple was supportive and helped her pay the Sh1,200 fees for the next six months and encouraged her to start her own business.
When Agnes started earning from her newly acquired skills, she went into self-employment using the Sh9,000 she had saved and moved to Sh500, single room in the town.The business grew rapidly and she relocated to Nyeri town, about 20 kilometres away. Chixx Hair Salon and later Chixx Enterprises was born.
“I credit my sucess to my previous employers who were willing to help,”she told Saturday Magazine during the interview at her salon in Old Batian Building in Nyeri’s central business district last week. Agnes bought her first matatu in 2003 using her savings from the hair salon. It was relatively old and cost Sh180,000. She ploughed back the profits into business and in 2005, and bought another matatu.
She says her breakthrough came in 2006 as she worked on a client’s hair. “The client, called Catherine, happened to be a local Barclays Bank staff and she advised me to open a bank account and ensure my account was active, that with time, I could qualify for an unsecured loan.”
After sometime, her savings allowed her a maximum of Sh100,000 which she used to grow and diversify her business. The budding businesswoman, who had by then been taught debt management, qualified for another unsecured loan of Sh400,000 after she had cleared the first one. She then got separate loans of Sh500,000 each and says she feels stable enough to apply for Sh1.5 million after she repays the current loans.
Last year, Agnes was among the customers who won prizes for maintaining accounts with high turnovers. With an eager mind to learn and grow, she joined the bank’s business club and says her life has never been the same since she registered with only Sh1,100. “I have only a modest education, but I have been interacting with highly educated people, including professors of business, during seminars. I now feel at the “level” of the professor I aspired to be.
The only difference is that I am a professor of my own business,” she says with a smile. Agnes has, courtesy of the club, toured Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Dubai on business missions. “My view has been broadened in terms of business, thanks to meeting people with big ideas and dreams. But I am where I am, not because of hard work, but by the grace of God.


“When I could not further my education, I did not lose hope because I had a vision and faith in God,” she says. So, what made her venture into the much maligned matatu business? “I have never had any problems with the police or my employees. I ensure that my vehicles are always in good condition and have the necessary documents,” she explains.
And her advice to those who think the world has ended when they experience hard times? “Even if you are not educated, you can still be a millionaire. You only need to accept what you are and have confidence in what you are doing. You do not have to start a business with big money. You can still start with as little as Sh1,000 and become a millionaire. People should also not shy away from asking for help. I did not keep quiet when I needed help. Above all, trust God. Hard work without God’s blessings means nothing,” says Agnes, a staunch Christian who educates several orphans. Agnes has no plans of marrying just yet. “I don’t rule out marriage, but I have not thought about it.” Her vision is to grow her hair salon and beauty product business. “My salon has made me what I am today. I shall never leave the hair salon business even if I become a multimillionaire.”


such an inspiring story---
-do you curse the day you were born in that family?
-do you blame you family for the upkeep?
-do you blame God for the tough time you have ever had?
-have you ever blamed yourself for not realizing your potential?
-what step are you to take so that this agony comes our of your mind

MONEY AND STEWARDSHIP

How we handle money reveals much about the depth of our commitment to Christ. That's why Jesus often talked about money. One-sixth of the gospel, including one out of every three parables, touches on stewardship. Jesus wasn't a fundraiser. He dealt with money matters because money matters. There are two ways in which a Christian may view his money--"How much of my money shall I use for God?" or "How much of God's money shall I use for myself?

Matthew 25:26-28 (New International Version)
26"His master replied, 'You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? 27Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest. 28" 'Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents.
We are all very familiar with the story of the talents. A man who was going on a long journey calls his slaves and gives them his possessions. To one he gives 5 talents to another he gives two and to another he gives one talent each according to his ability.
It is important to note two things here: The fist thing is that we have no say over where we begin, that’s up to the master, He decides what to give to who but the important thing is that each person gets something.
Secondly everyone begins on a level playing ground because each is given according to their ability, no more and no less. It is also important to note that the master does not tell the slaves what to do with the talent that is up to each slave.
The first two slaves go out and invest their money and they get double returns. The third one goes out digs a hole and hides all he has been given. Now there is nothing in this parable that says the first two slaves were saved and the third was not. Many times we believe that because we live a holy and godly life we will be blessed with finances. Let me burst your bubble, God will not reward you with lots of money and meet all your needs just because you are living a holy life.There are principles that govern how money is to be handled and they apply to us weather we are saved or not. The sad thing is that many Christians ignore this principles and we behave like the third slave. We don’t plan ahead, we don’t invest and we don’t save.
All we do is stand in faith. No wonder many of us are struggling to put food on our tables. Even the little that we have will be taken from us and given to him who has much.Yes we do not choose where we begin from but we determine where we end. The first two slaves took the risk and invested and God rewarded them with double the returns.Are you a good steward of that which God has blessed you with? If you are still struggling with putting food on the table and meeting your basic needs then there is something wrong with you and not God. He is the God of more than enough and like with the three slaves He may not tell you what to do with the talents

SO WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO, INVEST OR DIG A HOLE?

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

God has given you something to begin with and where you end up is up to you. Learn the principles of handling money and begin to apply them in your life.
Stop digging holes and being ignorant

Through the bible in one year
Today’s reading
Deuteronomy 19-20
Psalm 89
Acts 12

Now this is the Living Bible:

His name is Bill. He has wild hair, wears a T-shirt with holes in it, jeans, and no shoes. This was literally his wardrobe for his entire four years of college. He is brilliant. Kind of profound and very, very bright. He became a Christian while attending college.

Across the street from the campus is a well-dressed, very conservative church. They want to develop a ministry to the students but are not sure how to go about it. One day Bill decides to go there. He walks in with no shoes, jeans, his T-shirt, and wild hair. The service has already started and so Bill starts down the aisle looking for a seat. The church is completely packed and he can't find a seat. By now, people are really looking a bit uncomfortable, but no one says anything. Bill gets closer and closer and closer to the pulpit, and when he realizes there are no seats, he just squats down right on the carpet.

By now the people are really uptight, and the tension in the air is thick. About this time, the minister realizes that from way at the back of the church, a deacon is slowly making his way toward Bill. Now the deacon is in his eighties, has silver-gray hair, and a three-piece suit. A godly man, very elegant, very dignified, very courtly. He walks with a cane and, as he starts walking toward this boy, everyone is saying to themselves that you can't blame him for what he's going to do. How can you expect a man of his age and of his background to understand some college kid on the floor?

It takes a long time for the man to reach the boy. The church is utterly silent except for the clicking of the man's cane. All eyes are focused on him. You can't even hear anyone breathing. The minister can't even preach the sermon until the deacon does what he has to do. And now they see this elderly man drop his cane on the floor. With great difficulty, he lowers himself and sits down next to Bill and worships with him so he won't be alone. Everyone chokes up with emotion.
When the minister gains control, he says, "What I'm about to preach, you will never remember. What you have just seen, you will never forget."

"Be careful how you live. You may be the only Bible some people will ever read!"

I asked the Lord to bless you as I prayed for you today.
To guide you and protect you as you go along your way....
His love is always with you, His promises are true,
And when we give Him all our cares, You know He will see us through.