On What Foundation are you Building your Life?

There are about 15 mango trees and several other trees in our house. The heavy windy rains of June 9th that flooded parts of Accra uprooted one of the mango trees.

As I stood there in amazement the following Saturday perplexed at how such a big tree could be uprooted by the winds, many thoughts ran through my mind.

I walked through the whole compound and observed all the other trees, they still stood firm with their leaves moving to the rythm of the cool breeze as if it hadn't rained a drop.

All these trees were hit by the same winds and rains. But not all endured through to the end. The roots of one of the trees could not hold until the end. The tree was not deeply rooted and fell under the heavy thunderstorm.

There, the Holy Spirit started ministering to me. On what foundation are you building your life? The secret to a sustained successful life is our foundation. Rushing through the foundation stage of life in haste to make it in life is a recipe for disaster.

The Bible says "if the foundation be destroyed what shall the righteous do?" Psalms 11: 3

A tree may not bear fruits, its leaves may wither but still there is hope that this tree can flourish again. But if it is uprooted, that is the end. Habbakuk said even if the fig tree does not blossom and there are no fruit on the vine, he will praise the Lord. Job said there is hope for a tree that is cut off for it will sprout again and its branches will blossom. But then what happens when the tree is uprooted? A tree's source of life is in its roots. Through its roots the tree draws all the necessary nourishment it needs from the soil. A tree can be deeply rooted in a soil and still die if the soil doesn’t have the needed nutrients the tree needs.

In the same manner, the roof of a house can be carried away by the winds (like it did to my neighbour's house some time ago) and the painting can be washed away by the rains but if the foundation is not well done and the building collapses, that is the end.

This makes us understand how important our foundation is. On what foundation do you build your life?

On your degrees and certificates? On your wealth and properties? On fame and prestige? On some charms and incantations? Now ask yourself, will all that stand when the storms of life start? Will all that keep you through till the end?

Many people for fame and riches sold their souls to the devil. At first, their life is enviable but their end is nothing to write home about. Some commit suicide. Others become drug addicts and alcoholics.

In Matthew 7: 24-27, Jesus did a comparison between a wise man and a foolish man. The wise man built his house on the rock and it stood the test of weather. The foolish man built his house in the sand and it came tumbling down. 

Who is this Rock? Jesus Christ! He is the Cornerstone! He is the Rock of Ages! He is the Solid Rock! He has stood the test of eternity. He has been there before the world began and He is still there.
1 Corinthians 3: 10-15 explains "According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire."

Who goes through 40 years in the wilderness and comes out still strong unless the Lord himself is with them? Who goes through the storm and does not drown unless Jesus is in their boat?

Making Christ the foundation of your life, the foundation of your success, the foundation of your marriage is the wisest decision you can ever take in life.

Being a Christian does not mean you will not go through difficulties and hardships. Building your life on Christ means that at the end of those turbulence and storms, you will still stand firm and blossom. The troubles of life will not kill you but rather make you stronger.

Being a Christian means while other businesses are collapsing because of the economic meltdown, our businesses will be expanding and booming.

Building your life on Christ means all things will work together for our good.

Problems are bound to happen. Our time of test will surely come. Our wilderness period will definetly come. But will you be ready? We don't wait for the rainy season before we start building, we build in anticipation for the rainy season. Both the wise man and foolish man built before the rains came. Don't wait for the time of trouble before you seek God's face. Someone said if you only pray when you are in trouble then you are in trouble. Now that everything looks rosy is the time for you to search for God. 

Psalms 50: 14-15 reads "Offer to God Thanksgiving and pay your vows to the Most High. And Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you and you shall glorify Me."

How do we then build our foundation in Christ?

Matthew 7: 24-25 reads "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock."

You don't need cement or sand to build on the Rock. All you need is to hear God's Word and do Them. Now this is one  simple logic. If you don’t mind God, you don't expect Him to mind you in return. Do you?

Obedience is Key to making Christ the foundation of your life. Samuel told Saul "Obedience is better than sacrifice." The songwriter said "Trust and Obey, for there is no other way to be happy in Jesus than to trust and obey."

I will end with one of  my favourite Presbyterian Hymns. It moves me to tears any time I hear and sing it. I will also add the Methodist version that I love so much.

Now I have found the firm foundation

Which holds my anchor ever sure,

Laid long before the world’s creation

In Christ my Savior’s wounds secure,

Foundation which unmoved will stay

When all this world will pass away.

Captain of Israel's host, and Guide

Of all who seek the land above,

Beneath Thy shadow we abide,

The cloud of Thy protecting love;

Our strength, Thy grace; our rule, Thy Word; Our end, the glory of the Lord.

The Trinity

Are you having a hard time still trying to make meaning of the trinity? Are Christians polytheists? What does 3 in 1 God mean? Have a read.
Growing up I never really understood God being three in one. It was only until I really asked questions in my spirit that the Holy Spirit helped me understand.
With the advent of social media and with everyone posting what they think they know (including myself lol), I have realised that lot of Christians also don't get it.
One time someone wrote in his post "...but it is Jesus Christ who came to die for you not God..." Eish saa.
Another time I also read "three in one means four in total. There is a fourth person." My gwad. Lol.
Where in the Bible did these people get all this from?
Non Christians also look at us as people who worship several gods.
To begin with, let me state emphatically that Christians worship one God, the Almighty God who created heaven and earth. We are not polytheists. We don't serve three gods and like someone is even insinuating we do not have a fourth god.
So what does the trinity mean?
The trinity is made up of God the father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
The other name for God the father is Love.
The other name for God the Son who is Jesus Christ is the Word of God, the Wisdom of God.
The other name for God the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God.
What this means is that three things define the personality and character of God. It is Love, His Word and His Spirit. In this post the focus will be on the last two because that is what creates the most controversy and confusion.

You can never dissociate a person from his or her words and spirit (thoughts). We always say your words and thoughts determine who you will become. Being created in the image of God means He is also like that.
If you want to know God you have to know His Word and His Spirit. 
At the beginning the Bible in Genesis 1:2-3 says "the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters and God said 'let there be'"(the word).
John 1:1, 14 says 'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.' So when that person says it was not God who came to die for our sins, he is wrong.
God does not do anything without His Word. John 1: 3 'All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.' Colossians 1: 16 further explains 'for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can't see such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him.'
The Spirit of God backs His Word. It is the Spirit that enforced all the let be at creation. It is the Spirit that made Mary conceive the Word, Jesus Christ. It is the Spirit that empowered Jesus Christ to go about preaching and healing the sick. It is the Spirit that raised Jesus Christ from the dead.

Now what creates the most controversy and confusion is Jesus Christ. Because God was not begotten some say God cannot also beget. This reasoning already is wrong beacause the saying itself is limiting God and takes away His omnipotence.
Jesus Christ being the Son of God does not mean God went to sleep with a woman like the roman myths say. Jesus Christ is the word made flesh, the living word. Jesus Christ is not different from God. He himself said in John 10:30 'I and the father are one'. He said in John 5: 19, 30 'I do nothing unless what the father tells me' because He is the word. In Proverbs 8: 27, wisdom speaking says 'I (word, wisdom, Christ) was there when He (God) was laying the foundation of the earth. God never did anything without His Word. He has always operated through His Word. His Word is life and it gives life. His word is light and it brings light.  His word brings healing and deliverance. Everything you need from God is only accessible through His word, Jesus Christ. Accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and personal saviour is accepting the Word as the sole rule of your life. Loving Jesus Christ is doing the will of God which is the Word. Jesus said I am the way, the truth and the life. No one can come to the father except through me. (John 14: 6). Nothing moves God but His word alone. If your prayers are not based on His word, His Spirit is not answering them. Imitating Jesus Christ is abiding by His word. When Paul said Jesus is interceding in front of the father for our sake it meant God's word keeps echoing to Him day and night. So when we Christians pray and say in the name of Jesus Christ Amen,  we are saying may it be done according to His Word. This is what provokes the Holy Spirit into action.
Now the other controversy is the Holy Spirit. When Jesus Christ was introducing his disciples to the Holy Spirit before ascending into heaven, some people have interpreted that to mean he was talking about another human being who was to come after Him.
The Holy Spirit is the authority in which God operates. Two people can give you an order(word), you will obey one of them and not obey the other.
The Holy Spirit is the backing force of God's Word. This is what made the dry bones, the fig tree, the sea, the evil spirits, the sick people, Lazarus obey the Word.
The Word can do nothing without the backing of the Spirit. That is what He meant when He said I can do nothing on my own. Until the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus upon baptism, He lived 30 years without doing much. It was the Holy Spirit that kick started His earthly ministry. The Holy Spirit is God's power backing His Word.
Without the word too, the Holy Spirit can do nothing. The Spirit was only hovering upon the waters until God spoke. One cannot operate without the other.
We can only receive the Holy Spirit when we give our lives to Christ and accept Him as our Lord and personal Saviour.
But why do we need the Holy Spirit?
 Without the Spirit, because of our sinful nature we cannot live the Word.
Paul said in Romans 7:18-20 'And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.'
Naturally as human beings we kind of know what is the right thing to do.
Romans 2: 14-15 'Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right.'
But why do we not abide by it?
Romans 7: 23 explains 'But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me.'
The only way to live the Word is when this power is replaced by the Holy Spirit.
2 Corinthians 3: 6 says 'the letter kills but the Spirit gives life.' Until the Spirit empowers you to live the Word, you will live a frustrated life because you will do what you don't want to do. You need the Spirit to live the life God has called you to live. We call that the Spirit filled life.
With all that said, let me reiterate that God is One who operates through His Word backed by His Spirit.
I hope this reading has enlightened you. But let me make it clear that in no way do I claim this to be the exhaustive explanation and interpretation of the trinity. And I gladly welcome your contribution. But mind you this is not open in anyway to a debate.

Thank you for taking time to read. If you are still confused, the best place and person I will advice you to go is the Word of God and the Holy Spirit who will show you all things. Only they can give you understanding into this mystery. God bless you.