The Aug. 5th, 2025 YouVersion verse of the day was taken from Gal. 6:9 (NIV): “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up”. While meditating on it, I thought of Harvey Dent, the District Attorney of Gotham in the Dark Knight. If you’ve watched, the Dark Knight, you’ll agree with me that it’s a cinematic masterpiece and easily the best Batman movie. Only the Dark Knight Rises can rival it from a DCU perspective.
One of the things I’ve been on the lookout for is guest writers/contributors. So when I heard a powerful message by Abraham, a teenager in my church RCCG DSP, I just had to share it with you all. I hope it blesses you as much as it did me.
Music is powerful!
Some of you may realize this, some of you may not, but music is powerful! It can change your mood, stir your emotions, shape how you see yourself, other people, and God. Now, here’s the deeper truth: Music is spiritual and this is something the devil understands better than most of us.
A few days ago, I was dealing with a back pain and was looking for ways to improve my sitting posture while working. That’s when I remembered an external keyboard I bought in February 2022, when I had a laptop with keyboard issues. I only used it for the first few weeks after I bought it, before putting it in storage. Fast forward to June 2025 and the rejected stone became the cornerstone (Ps. 118:22). This got me thinking about how we are all given talents, some use it and others bury it. When you bury your God-given talent (James 1:17), this is akin to lighting a candle and putting it under a bucket (Matt. 5:15). The Joel Osteen devotional for June 12 (Do It Afraid), further reinforces the importance of using our talents by looking at the example of Moses and God getting angry when he kept making excuses to avoid using his talent (Ex. 4:14).
Earlier in the month, I was given the opportunity to share a word during the worker’s meeting in church. As I jokingly said, I asked God for one word and He gave me two from posts I’d written previously which are linked to each point. Below is what I shared and I pray it blesses you.
Point 1: Last
Sunday (March 2), the pastor talked about how we go through situations in life
and how the light helps us go through dark times.
Matt. 5:14 – 16 (NKJV): 14 “You are the
light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor
do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it
gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let
your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works
and glorify your Father in heaven.
As the light, when we come out of those situations and come in contact
with people going through something similar, we can take that and help them.
The oil that comes out of us in the crushing becomes what will anoint another
(probably TD Jakes).
In life, when we go through a season of crushing, we can either be a
potato, an egg or a coffee bean.
When a potato goes through the boil, it becomes soft. These people
become fearful and timid: we saw it with the disciples when they faced a storm
and Jesus was asleep (Matt. 8:23-27); Prov. 24:10 (MSG): “If you fall to pieces in a crisis,
there wasn’t much to you in the first place”.
The egg on the other hand becomes hardened
by adversity and in doing so loses its light. They allow adversity to redefine
their inner man. When you become hardened, you can’t love your neighbour as
yourself; you become stubborn like we saw with Pharoah. God doesn’t want us to
be hardened, that’s why He says that He’ll replace our heart of stone with
flesh (Eze. 36:26)
What you want is to be the coffee bean.
When the bean is put in boiling water, it redefines its environment. Water
becomes coffee. When you see yourself this way, you will be able to live a life
of impact, a life that brings people to God and shines so bright that people
glorify God (Matt. 5:16). In the middle of adversity, they learn to
abase and abound (Phil. 4:12).
Post: The Potato, the Egg & the Coffee Bean
Point 2: You and God are a majority
1 John 4:4 (NKJV): You are of God, little
children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater
than he who is in the world.
2 Kings 6:14-17 tells us about Elisha and his servant being
surrounded while they slept. When Elisha’s servant woke up from what was likely
a good night’s rest, stepped out to do whatever it was that took him out, he
saw his city surrounded by an army of horses and chariots. Elisha had to
enlighten him by saying in Vs. 16 (NKJV): “Do not fear, for those who are
with us are more than those who are with them”.
As we face the year that is already filled
with so many uncertainties, remember: You and God are a majority. May we be
like the coffee bean. This will be a landmark year for us in Jesus name!
Post: You and God are a Majority
Prayer: Lord, cause my light to never be
dim. Make me burn brighter for you.
But why should we take our thoughts
captive? Each day we experience: fear, anxiety, worry, and sinful thoughts. If we leave
these thoughts to run, they begin to transform us into those things.
That’s why Rom. 12:2 (NIV) warns us by saying:
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by
the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what
God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Consider the story of Saul and how fear caused him to sin by carrying out the
burnt offering (I Sam. 13:8-14). Vs. 11-12:
“What
have you done?” asked Samuel.
Saul
replied, “When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at
the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Mikmash,
“I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come
down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord’s favour.’
So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.”
Another example is Peter, the only man apart from Jesus to walk on water.
The moment he took his eyes off Jesus, he became afraid (Matt. 14:30-31).
There’s also the story of David (I Sam. 30:1-6). A million thoughts would have been going through his mind but he chose
to fix his thoughts and the result was different (I Sam. 30:18-19)
You have to keep your thoughts on God regardless of what’s going on around you. But to do so, you must be intentional and think about what you’re thinking about. You must take your thoughts captive, and audit them by asking yourself if they align with God’s word about you.
If you find yourself struggling, ask God for help (Heb. 4:16, AMPC). Over time,
it will become easier and you’ll find yourself being transformed to become more
like God, and less influenced by the world around you. I charge you to ask
yourself: What thoughts do you need to take captive today?
P.S.: while preaching this message, I
wondered aloud, why has no one else walked on water since Peter and Jesus did.
After all, Jesus said we will do not just the works He did but greater (John 14:12, NLT).
P.P.S: Check out a similar post to this from our archives: Check Your Thoughts
Photo cred: Etsy
