Ecclesiastes 1:9
“The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.”
To the wise, every place is classroom to learn from, and everyone is a teacher to listen to. To the wise, even the foolish are good books to read to increase in wisdom.
Proverbs 9:9
“Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.”
The wise don’t look down on anyone because they know that wisdom can be gotten anywhere … even in the most unlikely places. That was why GOD advised us to visit the ants to learn and be wise …
Proverbs 6:6
“Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:”
For the past two weeks, as the Olympic Games were being featured, the LORD was teaching me some life lessons through some of the occurrences and personalities involved, which I feel led to share with you this week; and the first lesson is from the story of a 19 year old US athlete, named Simone Biles.
Biles, as a baby girl was abandoned by her father and drug-addict mother. Biles’s father had abandoned her mother and was never present in his daughter’s life, before she was adopted by a Christian family, and in this just concluded Rio Olympics, went away with four gold medals and a bronze medal… in her first Olympic appearance! … Wow!
Matthew 21:42
“Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?”
Have you experienced any form of rejection before, especially by the ones who should help and protect you? Have you been treated like an unwanted personality in a setting you invested so much in before? Be encouraged, all would work out for your good, and GOD would set you up for a mighty celebration in JESUS’ NAME.
David said…
Psalm 27:10
“When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up.”
Prayer: FATHER, please turn every form of painful rejection I have experienced, or presently experiencing to glorious celebration in JESUS’ NAME.
Biles was able, with ease, to pull off moves other gymnasts could only dream about in a world seemingly unbound by the laws of gravity. Her routines and dismounts are so complex and so rarely seen in competition, they just name them after her.
Simone went from obscurity to becoming a celebrity on an international stage, becoming a household name for millions, and signing tens of millions of dollars worth of lucrative endorsement deals. That was what happened to JESUS, WHO was from a place reputed to be a low place, full of crime and unrighteousness. Hence, when Philip was telling Nathanael about HIM, Nathanael was finding it hard to believe …
John 1:46
“And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.”
That was how Joseph, who was sold by his brothers, became the Prime Minister in Egypt, to whom those same brothers came to bow down, asking for assistance…
Genesis 42:6
“And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all the people of the land: and Joseph's brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth.”
And Joseph later said to them …
Genesis 45:5
“Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.”
Genesis 45:8
“So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.”
Prayer: FATHER, please turn all the enemies have meant for evil to good for me in JESUS’ NAME.
I don’t know how bad things have been for you, but I come as a Prophet of the Most High GOD this very moment into your life that “Good things shall start coming out of every bad situation you have experienced in your life in JESUS’ NAME.
Prayer: FATHER, please turn every bad situation I have experienced to good in JESUS’ NAME.
And to think, none of all these good achievements of Biles would have been possible without adoption… just as we too came into the family of GOD, not as original members, because of our sinful and idolatry background, but through adoption by the BLOOD of JESUS…
Ephesians 1:5
“Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,”
Adoption involves the creation of the parent-child relationship between individuals who are not naturally so related. The adopted child is given the rights, privileges, and duties of a child and heir by the adoptive family. And by virtue of our adoption into the Family of GOD, we now have access of the FATHER, and all HIS resources in prayers. That is why we should never cease to pray to our Heavenly FATHER...
Romans 8:15
“For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.”
The couple that adopted her were the first to introduce her to the sport of gymnastics. They also introduced her to her Christian faith, attending church with them family every Sunday. That was when she learnt how to pray regularly.
It was Simone’s grounding in faith and a loving family that has allowed her to reach such super-human heights. Her grueling training routine has always been supported by her mother and father, who are with her every step of the way.
In a typical week Biles trains on Mondays and Wednesdays from 12:30 to 5:30; on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 9 to noon and 3 to 6; and on Saturdays from 9 to 1. On Sundays, her one day off, she goes to church with her family.
She recently became the fifth woman to win four gold medals at a single Games. She walked away with five medals in her very first Olympic. She also became the first black gymnast to win the all-around title at the World Championships in 2013 and, after retaining her crown in 2014, she won an unprecedented third successive all-around gold in Glasgow in 2015. She has 10 world golds to her name, more than any other woman in history - and 14 medals in total.
Deuteronomy 28:13
“And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them:”
Prayer: FATHER, according to YOUR WORD, please make me the head, and not the tail, in all good ventures of life in JESUS’ NAME.
1 Corinthians 2:9
“But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.”
Prayer: FATHER, please make me a positive record breaker to YOUR Glory, and to my blessings, in JESUS’ NAME.