By this the love of God was displayed in us, in that God has sent His [One and] only begotten Son [the One who is truly unique, the only One of His kind] into the world so that we might live through Him.

1 John 4:9 AMP

Living our earthly lives through the lifestyle of Jesus Christ Crucified is the best way to reciprocate God's love towards us as human beings.

Great Grace Brethren!!!

Healing
When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?”

John 5:6

The man was lying on a cheap straw mat, propped up on his arms. He felt lucky to get a spot at the pool, where the ill gathered, but not lucky enough to make it into the water as soon as it began to stir. Like many, he was sure the pool’s curative powers were activated by a visiting angel who would stir up the water from time to time.

“Would you like to get well?” the rabbi asked, balancing on his heels to look the man in the face. The question startled him. Didn’t this teacher realize he had been an invalid for thirty-eight years, almost as long as most healthy men live? Something in the rabbi’s tone, however, kept him from giving an angry retort.

Instead, he replied, “I can’t, sir . . . for I have no one to put me into the pool when the water bubbles up. Someone else always gets there ahead of me” (John 5:7).

There! That should put a stop to the conversation. Instead came the quick command: “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!” (verse . The man felt something lift him to his feet. Hardly knowing what he was doing, he bent down to snatch up his mat. To the amazement of all, he simply gave a quizzical look and then began walking.

The odd question—“Would you like to get well?”—may cause us to wonder whether the invalid had wanted to be healed. Commenting on this passage, Mark Buchanan says, “Sickness can actually steal the place of God. It can become the sick person’s center, the touchstone by which he defines himself. Illness is a tyrant with huge territorial ambitions. It is a seductress with large designs. It wants not only the sick person’s body. It wants his heart and mind also.”
Pain, especially when prolonged, can be a vortex that is hard to escape. If you are praying for healing for yourself or others, ask God to restore both body and soul as a sign of his powerful presence and his promised peace.

Lord, heal those who are suffering from chronic illnesses that threaten to take over their identities. Give them strength and peace, courage and hope. Raise them up and make them whole.
{Thomas Moyosore Gabriel}

NEVER GET TIRED OF CONSULTING JESUS CHRIST CRUCIFIED ABOUT YOUR LIFE:
When our younger son returned from school yesterday, he asked me,

"Mummy, where am I from? My aunty asked me in school today."

So, I said to him,

"You're from Ekiti."

When he heard, he repeated it,

"I am from Ekiti. I am from Ekiti. I am from Ekiti..."

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This morning, he came to me again.

"Mummy, where did you say I am from?"

I told him again,

"You're from Ekiti."

Then he started singing it again,

"I am from Ekiti. I am from Ekiti. I am from Ekiti..."

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I had heard him ask hubby earlier, shortly before he came to me.

And I don't know why he chose to keep asking...

But as he asked for the last time before he went to join the school bus, I got inspired by the Holy Spirit...

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Who are you asking about yourself?

Who's telling you about you?

Who do you go to for information about you - about your source, your life, your assignment, your purpose, your calling, your marriage partner?

Who is telling you about you?

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When our son needed to know where he's from, he came to us, his parents.

You as God's son, who are you consulting?

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If you go to the wrong source, you may likely get the wrong information.

And the wrong information will never get you to the right destination.

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But God is your source: the One who does not only know the truth about you but is also the truth, Himself.

He's the only right source; He cannot lie.

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Our son having to come again and again to ask also communicates something.

When you have doubts, go back to ask again.

When you have forgotten for any reason, go back and ask again.

When you need assurance and reassurance, return and re-ask.

If I, a human parent, didn't get tired of answering my boy each time he asked, how much more God?

You have His word,

"Call to me and I will answer you. I'll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own." Jer. 33:3 (MSG)

May you never outgrow consulting Him for your life.

Great grace to you in Jesus name.

God bless you...
(BIMBOLA TAYO-BAMIDELE)