Month: May 2021

The challenges before you aren’t unsolvable.

All of the most notable leaders in the Bible were chosen by God to solve problems. When God created Adam and Eve, He needed someone to rule the earth. When God called Noah, He needed an ark.

When He called Abraham, God wanted to establish a righteous nation. When God called Joseph, He needed a man who could solve an economic crisis. When God met Moses, He wanted him to free some slaves.

Jesus also came into the world to solve a problem. If God is asking you to lead in any area that appears to be problematic, know that He wants you to be the problem solver.

Written by Ben Dankaka

Get up and activate the greatness within you.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “What lies behind us, and what lies before us are but tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”

When Emerson made that remark he was possibly talking about our ability to triumph in the midst of challenges. Though we are often surrounded by challenges, within us, lays the power to prevail over every negative situation. 

We all were created by God and equipped with the ability to do great things. I am certain of this because you were created in God’s image. God is great, and since He put His Spirit inside of you, then you are automatically fortified for greatness. Activate the greatness within you (Genesis 1:26-28; 1 John 4:4).

Written by Ben Dankaka

To fulfill any leadership task, stay focused on the big picture.

One day, John and his brother, James tried to call fire down from heaven to destroy a Samaritan village because the people would not receive them (Luke 9:51). But Christ rebuked the two disciples.

No doubt, John and James were overzealous apostles. From the that incident, you would notice that Jesus was a leader who avoided distractions. Why should He worry about the rude Samaritans when their antagonism wouldn’t stop Him from traveling through another village?

As at the time that Jesus wanted to pass through the Samaritan village, He had already made up His mind to go to Jerusalem because it was time “for him to be taken up to heaven”. Today, focused on the big picture.

Written by Ben Dankaka

Stay close to God.

After David killed Goliath, news about him spread. Then, some women popped up with a praise song that placed him above his master, Saul. Because of that song, David had to leave his country.

But the negative impact of the women’s song extended to other kingdoms. When David sought refuge in king Achish’s kingdom, his servants reminded him that he was dealing with a man whom they sang about (1 Samuel 18: 6-9; 1 Samuel 21:10-15; 2 Samuel 22:47-49).

There are times you might achieve something remarkable. And the praises you get will create enemies who feel threatened. So, they would try to stop you. If you ever find yourself in this kind of state, go to God for help.

Written by Ben Dankaka

Unless if God tells you to quit, stay there.

After winning the prayer contest against the prophets of Baal, Elijah inspired a revival. When the Israelites saw how God responded to Elijah’s sacrifice they immediately repented.

But just as Elijah was about to celebrate his victory, he found himself, once again in the wilderness, when he received a death threat from Jezebel. While he was on exile, Elijah became depressed and even prayed that God would take his own life. (1 Kings 18:38-46; 19:1-9)

Perhaps, you’ve found yourself in a similar situation. You’ve spent your energy on a cause. But instead of recognition, you’ve been rejected and misunderstood. Unless if God tells you to quit, stay there. Oftentimes, God wants us to confront challenges, not to run from it.

Written by Ben Dankaka

Pray according to God’s will.

One of the most powerful prayers in the Bible is the one by Elijah when he challenged the prophets of Baal. The prophets had begun the challenge by praying to their god. But their prayer didn’t yield any result.

When it got to Elijah’s turn, he prayed for a few minutes. Yet, God responded almost immediately.

One big difference between the two prayers is that while Elijah’s request was brief, straight to the point, and almost like a conversation, the Baal prophets prayed for too long, shouting, dancing and even slashing themselves with swords (1 Kings 18:1-39).

What we can learn from that story is that praying according to God’s will saves a lot of time and effort.

Written by Ben Dankaka

God prioritizes our prayer requests according to our needs.

Oftentimes, we fail to realize that God prioritizes our prayer requests according to His perfect plan. And that is often determined by time. That is, He responds to our requests at the time we need them.

Recall that in the book of Genesis, we are told that the earth had no shrub, “for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground” (Genesis 2:5). In other words, because there was no man to till the earth, God didn’t send down rain at a certain time.

Timing is therefore important to God. It could be that the only thing wrong with your prayer is bad timing.

Written by Ben Dankaka

Allow God to deal with the enemy.

There’s a saying that “revenge is a dish best served cold”. This implies that revenge is more fulfilling when it’s carried out at an unexpected time.

I strongly disagree because the Bible condemns it (Romans 12:19).

Recall what happened in the case between Peter and Herod. When Herod tried to kill Peter, God stepped in and rescued Peter by Himself because Herod was actually fighting God, not Peter. By not fighting back, Peter left room for God’s wrath as Herod was eventually struck down with a blow by an angel (Acts 12:17-24). Allow God to deal with the enemy.

Written by Ben Dankaka

Commit to focusing on what you can change, rather than what’s already happened.

When Peter told the brethren how the Lord had saved him, He said to them, “Tell James and the brothers about this,” and then he left for another place. That is, Peter didn’t hold on to his past. He moved on (Acts 12:1-17).

Clearly, the main thing on Peter’s mind was how to further his work of spreading the gospel. And not on dwelling on the bitter experiences. He moved out of the city, leaving his past behind.

One reason why many people fail to overcome the crises in their lives is because they often go through life feeling bitter and frustrated, even after they’ve been liberated.

To fully recover from a crisis, do what Peter did. Move on!

Written by Ben Dankaka

You may not know who’s going to be inspired by your testimony.

On the night that Peter was rescued by the angel, he went to the house where people had gathered to pray for him. He was eager to meet those who stood by him.

Peter didn’t think of rushing home to celebrate alone. Instead, the first thing on his mind was to share his testimony (Acts 12:25).

Too often, we fail to share our testimony after we’ve had our miracle. When we are facing challenges, we talk to people and ask them to pray for us. But when God eventually answers our prayers, we forget to return to those who prayed for us. What we fail to realize is that testimonies are important because they serve as proofs to God’s faithfulness.

Written by Ben Dankaka