Small Things Are Great

A few days back, a sophesticated friend reached out with this concern: "If Numbers 23:19 says that God is not a man that He should change His mind, then how do we explain the story of King Hezekiah? Wasn't Hezekiah told he would die, only for God to add fifteen more years to his life after he prayed? Doesn't that mean God changed His mind?" It's a thoughtful question and one that has been asked by many over the years. My response to them was as follows. Inasmuch as your question sounds valid, it isn't. Here are my reasons for saying that. 1. The question is almost always asked out of the context of the passages in question. A text taken out of context becomes a pretext. 2. The question often seeks to justify men while accusing God of inconsistency. Men will always lose in such an undertaking. I'm not here to defend Him though. He can do a better job at that. So let's leave the texts for a moment and first look at the contexts in play. To note: A. Two i...

 Mic testing... excellent! We are in the book of Amos in our journey through the Bible this year. As you may remember, this year we chose to focus on the Old Testament because we came to appreciate an important truth: if we understand the Old Testament, we will understand what shaped and guided the writing of the New Testament. The New Testament is not a story detached from the Old; it is the fulfillment of everything God had been revealing from the beginning. It is the story of God's promises reaching their climax in Christ Jesus, the man through whom people from every nation are drawn into the worship of the one true God. As we have walked through the Old Testament, we have also discovered something fascinating about its structure. The historical storyline is carried primarily by ten books. It begins with the five books of Moses (the Pentateuch): Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. They are followed by Joshua, Judges (with Ruth fitting naturally into the period ...

One of the questions many people struggle with is this: What is the point of life, death, and eternal life(in heaven or hell)? A while back, I had a fellowship with one of my friends. During our conversation, they asked a simple but profound question: " Will there ever be a time when we can start over again like in a new earth ?" I believe they asked that question because life has not been easy. Like many people, they has experienced disappointment, confusion, and uncertainty. They longs for a better world, a place where things are finally made right. I was grateful for the question because Scripture gives us an answer. The Bible tells us that there is indeed a day coming when God will REVEAL a new heaven and a new earth. " Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away... " (Revelation 21:1) A few verses later John realized something: " Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, an...

Mention the book of Jonah, and almost immediately two things come to mind: a giant fish and a stubborn prophet. Yap! Jonah was stubborn towards God on his second and last mission engagement as a prophet as recorded. He might have been involved as a prophet other times, but not all were recorded. Parents don't even name their sons Jonah. His name is a close relative to Judas, but if you study this document closely, you might realize that this brother was a good friend of God. He and God talked freely and he expressed his real emotions and feelings with no fear. God seems to have fun with it and goes to the extent of giving him a shade for a moment and then a scorching heat in the next. More like a prank a friend would pull on another. In the end, they exit the scene together happy and walking into the sunset. For many people however, Jonah is little more than a children's story or a piece of ancient fiction. They struggle with the miracles. How can a man survive inside a fish fo...

 ‎The book of Kings is one of the saddest books in the Bible. Not because it lacks miracles, power or famous names, but because it tells the story of how a people can slowly lose everything God gave them. ‎ ‎All of us come from Nations with great potential but continually see that potential going down the drain. Especially in Africa, we know what it looks like for a nation to gain independence and slowly begin struggling with corruption, division, leadership crises, tribalism, injustice, and spiritual confusion. We know what it feels like to look at great potential and wonder, “How did we get here?” ‎ ‎That is exactly the feeling a Jew feels when reading Kings. ‎ ‎The story begins after Israel has reached its peak under David. Think of it as Israel’s “golden generation.” The kingdom is united, the enemies are subdued and the economy is thriving. Thanks to Davids leadership. Solomon steps in, builds the temple and their influence stretches far beyond their borders. Kings and queens ...

Juzi, I was scrolling through Facebook when I came across a post by brother Kinuthia, who has chosen to identify as a sister. In the post, he was dressed in a blue outfit and standing on top of a flat-roofed building on a bright and sunny day. The ensemble included a miniskirt, a coat, and a white blouse or shirt, with a touch of red somewhere in the mix. The post itself was interesting, but it was the comment section that caught my attention. One brother asked a question that was less about Kinuthia and more about God. He wondered whether God still exists. His argument was that if God exists—the same God who judged Sodom—then people like Kinuthia would neither be alive nor flourishing. To him, such behaviour was blasphemous and an insult to God. As I read the comment, I found myself thinking about how often people feel the need to defend God. Sometimes the concern is genuine. We look around and see things that seem contrary to God's will. We see evil prosper, wickedness celebrated...