OLUSEGUN ISAAC BLOG

 ' And we all, with unveiled face, continually seeing as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are progressively being transformed into His image from [one degree of] glory to [even more] glory, which comes from the Lord, [who is] the Spirit.'  (2 Corinthians 3:18 AMP)   Have you watched a full-grown, completely formed butterfly emerge from it's pupa cocoon and immediately fly away? Scientists call it complete metamorphosis - a progressive change in stages from egg to larva to pupa to adult. But the change only ultimately produces another butterfly, not a moth, showing no shift in nature. A grain of corn can grow to become a cob of maize, producing more corn, but a piece of wood when burnt in fire becomes charcoal, an irrevocable change. The Merrien Webster dictionary defines paradigm shift as a change that happens when the usual way of thinking about or doing something is replaced by a new and different way. Example is the experience of Apostle Paul when he had an encounter w

'Go to the ant, you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise, which, having no captain, overseer or ruler, provides her supplies in the summer, and gathers her food in the harvest. How long will you slumber, O sluggard? When will you rise from your sleep?' (Proverbs 6:6-9 NKJV). I have often watched ants in action and I believe what the bible says of them. Once as I sat on the paved steps leading to my garden chewing coconut, a few crumbs fell by my side and I planned to pick them up when leaving later. Minutes after when I looked, I saw a number of ants carrying the crumbs away to a far off hole in the pavement. To encourage them, I threw more crumbs on the spot and to my amazement, a larger contingent arrived and were carting the bounty away, some carrying pieces much bigger than their own size! And it all started with one single ant on patrol which found food and ran back to base, not empty-handed, but took with it a piece of the food and brought others back to the discovery

  'Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.' (Philippians 3:12-14 NKJV).      Jamaican star Usain Bolt was the fastest man on earth, at least till the 2016 Rio Olympic games when he ran the 100 meters sprint in 9.58 seconds. Some call him 'lightning bolt'. At 32 years of age he was already worth $24 billion according to the Forbes Index. Many know him as a sprint star alone, but he is also a footballer, dancer, coach etc. When asked the secret of his success he made these statements among others: "Those seven guys behind you in that track want it much as you want it. So you have to want it more. This is why you train harder." And another statement by him: "It doesn't matter where you start, as long as you finish strong. There are better starters

" If a country divides itself into groups which fight each other, that country will fall apart.  If a family divides itself into groups which fight each other, that family will fall apart." (Mark 3:24-25 GNB).                 Chickens are the fox's favourite meal, and chickens live in dread of the fox. But there's the story of a pack of chickens that killed a fox. The fox entered the fold of the chickens through a hatch door which automatically shut the fox in. The fox panicked and the chickens saw it; they became bold and turned vicious. The whole pack charged forward and aggressively attacked the fox until they pecked it to death. The old maxim remains true - there's power in unity!         There is power in unity. The enemies of any community cannot prevail if the dwellers stand in solidarity. Solidarity signifies continued fellowship whether in gain or loss, in honour or dishonour, in victory or defeat. Among people, it is the concerted effort geared towards t

Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matt. 4:19 )      The word Mentor originated from the Greek fables. It was the name belonging originally to a trusted friend of Oddyseus assigned by him to raise his son while he was away fighting in the Trojan war. A mentor has thus become defined as a trusted trainer, a teacher or counsellor who imparts his knowledge or skill to an apprentice called a mentee.       A discipler does more than mentoring. He teaches his mentee to teach others. He trains one to train others, and the chain continues unbroken. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others (2Tim. 2:2)        That was the method of our Lord Jesus Christ to spread the Gospel. He trained twelve disciples to train His followers to bring people into His Father’s kingdom. Then He saved another disciple, Paul, and empowered him specially to take salvation to the Gentile world.   

  Worship Devotional.  Sunday May 26, 2024 _Foremost Names and Titles of Jesus_  SON OF MAN _And the high priest answered and said to Him, “I put You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!” Jesus said to him, “It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”_ (Matthew 26:63-64 NKJV)       My late father left us in Lagos in the late nineteen forties to resume work at the newly founded University of Ibadan. When he had settled down, he brought his whole family to him in Ibadan and we lived in Oke Bola among his friends. We had always addressed him fondly as 'Dad' and the appellation soon spread around the friendly neighbourhood. So everyone called him 'Dad', and called us 'Omo Dad', meaning Son or Child of Dad. That became our family identity!      Jesus's conception was by the Holy Spirit and He came on earth a

 Worship Devotional. Sunday May 12, 2024   _Foremost Names and Titles of Jesus_  SON OF GOD    _“...The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God"._ (Luke 1:35 NKJV)       There's this familiar Nigerian joke we sometimes crack when a boy or man we were just talking about suddenly turns up unexpectedly in our midst. We declare, "You are the true son of your father"! I am not sure the joke applies to women or girls!        When Jesus asked His disciples whom they say He is, Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Mt. 16:16). After the baptism of Jesus, God pointedly announced Jesus as His beloved Son for the world to hear, adding that He is well pleased with Him. In my view, that pronouncement by God Himself, clearly heard by the people during Jesus' days on earth, was enough to convince anyone that the Saviour of th

 _Foremost Names and Titles of Jesus_  KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS   _'And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.'_ (Revelation 19:16 NKJV).       Children's Day, presently celebrated every May 27 in many parts of the world, Nigeria inclusive, started as Empire Day, a day observed throughout the British Empire since the first decade of the twentieth century. It was a day set aside to honour the British Queen as the imperial head of the British Commonwealth, Nigeria being a member. As schools children, we had the privilege of being lined up on the streets waving our mini British flags, a.k.a. 'Union Jack', cheering and hailing the sovereign Queen of Commonwealth nations. Today only relics of the British Empire remain. And it is the same with other kingdoms of this world.       A verse of scripture states, '... “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ; and He shall reign fo

IMMANUEL   _“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”_ (Matthew 1:23 NKJV) Here's a chat with a young father: "You named your son Emmanuel, any particular reason?" "We bear English names in my family. My father gave him the name. Mine is John." "Emmanuel is not an English name, it is a bible name." "I know. I love the name; I chose the name among many that were given the boy." "Do you know it's meaning?" "Not really, I just love calling my son by that name!" "Why?" "It sounds religious, I'm sure you know I'm a Christian." It is obvious from this chat that many are yet to know the truth behind the name and person of Jesus. This is because not every Christian is a true believer in Him, although one prays it was so.        'Immanuel' is translated 'God with us', and is the fulfilment of an