With Senior Pastor Josephat Gwajima | GCTC. Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
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| Senior Pastor Josephat Gwajima |
PROLOGUE:
By nature, Jehovah is a step by step God, he gives people one step after
another. Also, like always, life is lived step by step, day by day; which is
why a person's success is not achieved by just picking up a pice of diamond or
just by getting lucky, but is by moving step by step heading towards richness.
Genesis 15:13; Here we can see God talking to Abraham telling him that his descendants
(Israelites), will be enslaved for four hundred years. But surprisingly, they
were enslaved in Egypt for four hundred and thirty years. (Exodus 12:40-41),
we get to see here that one's spiritual or physical success can be delayed
and other matters not taken action upon or even thought of.
MEANING OF PROGRESS:
So that you can understand the meaning of progress, let me use this
example: In the life that we live, it is possible for someone to start with a
low income, one that is enough for him alone. But after some time, that person
may get another job with a higher income and then later on, get a promotion. He
then gets to build his first house, and then the second, and then travel far,
and build more houses. Those are steps that God has given people to go through
as they continue living. By this example, now we see that PROGRESS is
someone's ongoing life that God has put for us on Earth.
It is important to know that God has put in everyone's life, steps or
divine purpose that will progress a person to success. Which is why King David
said "Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over
me." Psalms 119:133; King David
knew that God gives one step after another to everyone and it is possible for
this progress to be hindered.
POSIBILITY OF BEING DELAYED:
If you read Jeremiah 25:11-12; "... and these nations will serve
the king of Babylon seventy years..." , from there we will see that
God told the Israelites that the time they will be enslaved for is seventy
years but the question is, did they stay enslaved for seventy years? We have
the answer in Daniel 9:2, the Bible says that from the readings Daniel
did, he discovered that the time for being enslaved was up. After finding out
so, he decided to fast and pray. Like so, someone's life can be delayed not to
reach their destiny; which is why one can be successful in twenty years, and
the other in seventy years. Basically, they are both successful, but one, much
later than the other.
Someone's progress can be delayed by someone else, certain behavior, or the
devil himself. Which is why even when the Israelites were leaving Israel, they
had an option between the short way or the long one. But they were taken
through the long route for forty years through the desert to avoid a battle.
The life of the Israelites is a shadow for our spiritual life; meaning that you
can become successful after a long period of time just because you don't want
to fight. Which is why someone may get married but at the age of sixty, or one
might build a house but at the age of seventy with very little time left to
live in that house just because you have been delayed.
HOW THE DEVIL DELAYS PROGRESS:
There are many reasons as to why someone’s
progress can be delayed. Those can be a close relative or someone’s behavior
(Eg: laziness, jealousy, sin etc.) Today we are going to see just how the devil
can delay someone’s progress. In the book of Daniel 10:1-14; Here we can
see that Daniel had decided to fast and pray but without any answer, and only
on the 21st day did the angel Gabriel appear to Daniel and said, “Do
not be afraid Daniel. Since the first day you set your mind to gain
understanding and to humble yourself before God, your words were heard…” If
you keep reading, you will discover the angel telling Daniel that his answers
were being opposed by the prince of the Persian kingdom.
So there are people that pray to God without
knowing that the devil is there somewhere trying to block them from getting
that which God has promised them in their time. Proverbs 19:9; God is
the one that establishes someone’s steps and without the devil delaying them.
Basically, God brought you down to Earth and gave you steps that you were
supposed to go through but because of the devil, you find that the life you are
living is not according to the steps that God had set for you. When you read Psalm
73:2 “… my feet had almost slipped…” The bible shows that there is a
possibility that it is possible for someone to slip in their steps. These are
not normal physical footsteps, but someone’s spiritual or physical life heading
towards success.
AN EXAMPLE OF SOMEONE IN THE BIBLE THAT HAD BEEN DELAYED BY THE DEVIL:
In the bible there is a servant of the Lord that
had been delayed, Mark 5:6-20; This person with an evil spirit inside
him had a calling to serve the Lord by preaching the gospel; which is why after
being saved, he went on to preach the gospel in Decapolis but he did stay in
the graveyard for many years which he could have spent serving the Lord. That
is why today you can find many people with the calling to serve the God but the
devil gives them thoughts opposite of that and they come to realization in the
end that they have wasted so many years being delayed.
This is how the devil can delay someone in their
studies, business, success, progress, relationships etc. This can happen when
unclean spirits enter someone and block their steps in success, and if that
person has no knowledge that it is the devil that is doing so, they will end up
blaming and giving up hope completely.
MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICES:
To have control over your steps you have to make
a decision to fight in the spiritual realm. Which is why there are some people
who are born again and others who are not who have been prophesied for by many
servants of God but none have come true until this day; this is because they
chose not to fight in the spiritual realm. That is why when Daniel realized
that the time for being enslaved were long over, he decided to fast and pray so to take
control over the steps that God had planned.
It is important to know that when God promises
you something, it is not set that you will receive it at that time because
there is someone on its opposition. Daniel prayed for 21 days without answers
and it is possible that he started to blame God for not answering but in fact
the problem was with the kings of the skies. All the same, if you do not decide
to fight with the kings of the skies and the devil, you can find yourself in
life battles without any victory. It is important to use the authority that
Jesus Christ had lef us at the cross to destroy the devil that is trying to
delay your success in the name of Jesus Christ.
Information Ministry, GCTC. (Translation Ministry)
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