WordCosmos

The road to greatness has never been an easy one, and so is the road to eternal life. But the reward thereof is worth the cost. Matthew 7:13-14 explains this “Enter by the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life and there are few who find it.” this explains why so few people ever get to fulfil their dreams, destinies and calling in life. The cost screams “run for your life!” and your mind being wired for safety responds, “Run, I shall”, But your spirit being wired to the creator whispers “trust and have faith in God.” It is the will of your heavenly father to lead you to greatness. And what is greatness? I would say it is to be “beyond the ordinary” version of you. God is constantly seeking out men and women who are willing to walk the road of greatness, and He pledges not to leave you on your own, but to be your guide, mentor, councillor and deliverer; Isaiah 43:2 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. when you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.” verse 3 and 4 of same chapter tells of God’s relentless love for you and how precious you are in His sight. Do not forget that the God who delivered Shedrach, Daniel, Meshach and Abednego, so that they were not burned in the fire neither did the flames scorch them, is still the same God you serve today. Remember the story of the red sea, when God parted the sea for His children Israel to walk through, He went before them, He was with them and the sea did not overflow them. Our God has an excellent record of faithfulness in doing signs and marvellous wonders and in this we are confidence to put our trust in Him.

Over history and even today in our time, there have been great men and women of God. People who allowed God to use them bring healing, deliverance and joy to their communities and abroad. One comes to my mind, and his name is Gideon. He was from the poorest clan in Israel, and to top that off, he was the least in his father’s house. In today’s words- he was a nobody. The situation surrounding him, coupled with the oppression of Israel by the medians and Amalekites reflected a distorted view of whom Gideon really was not. But when God called Gideon into service, the first thing He did was to change Gideons view of himself by telling him the truth of whom he really was. Judges 6:12 describes how the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon and said, “the Lord is with you, you mighty man of valour.” This revelation overruled everything Gideon thought he was and elevated him into something greater– someone he never thought he could be. What comes next after this revelation was a task to be accomplished. In verse 14 of same chapter the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and you shall save Israel from the Midianites, have I not sent you?” this verse reveals that God has placed something on the inside of you and the destinies of so many people are dependent on that which is on the inside of you. The question now is; “will you obey or disobey? Are you ready to give what it takes? Will you go ahead and birth that which God has placed on the inside of you? or will you let it just sit in a dormancy while you continue to be tossed to and fro in bondage?” I’m confident that you will go for the first option, and that is why you are here today, feeding on God word. Romans 8:19 says “for the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.” I don’t know what kind of challenge you are battling with; it could be the death of a loved one, a chronic illness, depression, fear, worries, financial difficulties, loneliness, doubts, marital issues… they are countless, but so is the faithfulness of God. Even in the midst of sorrow, God can use you to bring life to dead situations, He can turn things around for your good and for the good of those around you.

Now after the revelation (renewing of mind), The task (your purpose and mission), comes the reminder of His promises. When God gave Gideon the task, Gideon found excuses to run away from it. fear is always ready to give you reasons why you should not. But then God reminded Gideon of His promises in verse 16 “and the Lord said to him; surely I will be with you and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man.” I’m pretty sure Gideon would have exclaimed “wooh, wait a minute God! As one man? Do you know what you are talking about? Have you seen the number of this people that they are as the sand of the sea?” the task seemed impossible, so impossible that Gideon wondered if it was truly the Lord speaking to him, and he had to ask for a sign in order to confirm if it truly was the Lord. But God being all patient and merciful granted Gideon the signs he asked for. Sometimes when God assigns a task, just like Gideon, it may seem impossible to accomplish, we might feel too small for the task. In times like this do remember what the Lord said in Isaiah 55:9 “for as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.” Gideons faith was further put to test when God told him to reduce the number of armies he was with. Logically that would seem unwise, but God uses the foolish things to shame the wise. Gideon obeyed, yielded to the Spirit of God and moved in the direction by which he was being led. And God fought the battle of Israel as described in Judges 7:22, by setting the enemies sword against each other, so they were destroyed.

Now, I will outline the practical steps to greatness using the Gideon guideline.

• Renew your mind and redefine who you are by feeding yourself with God’s word
• Listen when God speaks to you. He speaks in different ways
• Accept the task given to you and obey the voice of the Holy Spirit
• Hold on to Gods promises, have faith and trust in Him.
• Continue to pray about it
• Don’t lose sight of the visons and dreams He has placed in you
• Get connected with people that are like minded, people with the same vision, walk with them.
• Move, take actions towards fulfilling the mission and purpose of the calling upon your life, don’t let anything hold you back
• Remind yourself again of Gods promises, let Him be your strength.

I pray the Lord gives you the revelation to discover your calling, so that you begin to align yourself to His purpose for your life. Even as you receive in this very moment, wisdom, courage, faith and grace to take the necessary actions needed to birth that which He has placed on the inside of you, to continue of the path of salvation, and to serve Him faithfully. Amen! Let the word of God in Isaiah 40:31 revive you from within ” They that wait upon the Lord, shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings of eagles; They shall run and not be weary, walk and not faint.”