Transcription
It takes making decisions to rise in life, and it takes making decisions to fall or to fail in life. Failure has a formula. Are we together?
Unfortunately for failure, you don't have to learn it to experience it. The formula was designed to find you and act upon you in the presence of ignorance. Write this down.
The real value of wisdom, the real value of wisdom is in its ability to help you make destiny superior destiny advancing decisions. I'll take it again. The real value of wisdom is in its ability to help you make superior destiny advancing decisions. So if you say I am wise or I have the spirit of wisdom in my life, the real value of wisdom is in its ability to help you make superior destiny advancing decisions. Please write it, write it in your heart and write it on your notes. The real value of wisdom is in its ability to help you make superior destiny advancing decisions.
There are many people claiming to be wise. There are many impartation services with all due respect that purport to impart wisdom. But we do not see the excellency of wisdom in the life of believers because believers are still surrounded by very foolish decisions that they keep making again and again and again. And the moment you see that the effects of the decisions that you make is not leading you towards a desired heaven, it then means you are bankrupt of wisdom. The Bible says, "Does any man lack wisdom?" My question is, how do you know you do not have wisdom? By the outcomes of your life. You can know that I'm bankrupt of the wisdom of God by the outcomes.
Listen, the real value of wisdom is in its ability to influence the quality of decisions that you make. When a man carries the spirit of wisdom, most if not all your decisions will be superior destiny advancing decisions. You can always know whether it is wisdom speaking or another spirit speaking by the quality of decisions. Are we together now? Yes.
Listen, this issue of decisions. I remember many years ago I would hear Dr. Modok would say decisions decide destiny. I got what he was saying, but perhaps I did not understand the gravity of what he was saying. I've had the honor of meeting people I used to know many, many years ago, and for some of them, their lives have not changed, or some of them have become very worst versions of themselves. I remember not too long ago I met someone I used to know years ago. My goodness, his life was not something to write home about. I had to honestly ask him what happened. But then I was asking something whose answer I already knew. Decisions. Decisions.
Your conditions can be great, but your decisions will superimpose your conditions and bring you into a negative consequence if they are poor decisions. Whereas for another, you can come, you can have negative conditions surrounding you and make quality choices and decisions that end up bringing you to your desired heavens. I respected the power of choices and decisions when I came into a position of leadership, and I understood how serious choices and decisions were. Do you know that one decision can make you a bad father forever? One decision can make you a bad mother forever. This is how powerful it is. One decision or indecision can send you to hell. Not two, not three, one decision. This is how powerful decisions are.
There are people who have been sick in the hospital and yet they were able to survive. The people who had accidents, hit by metals and all of that, and were able to endure, but one decision you can make. It will not injure you physically, but it can literally define your eternal destiny. Whoever told you that choices and decisions are a cheap matter to play with? I can tell you sincerely, you are where you are right now looking at me, especially if you hate where you are. It is an uncomfortable truth, but I want you to admit it right now in Coonia that you are where you are, comfortable or not, because of the decisions and the choices that you have made. Apostle, everybody hates me. It has to be demonic. I agree. But those demons require something to work on, and you donated your will through ignorance or your passion to not get knowledge and cooperated with them in bringing yourself to this current state. Can I tell you your real deliverance begins the day you admit that I am where I am, comfortable or not, because of the decisions I have made with my life? Hallelujah.
There are many people who have made foolish decisions in the name of smartness. Now, when the devil wants to deceive you, he changes the name of the consequences to attract you. Are we together now? Yes. Satan will call poison, sweet, or whatever it is, and then because the name change does not mean the outcome will change. Are we together now? Yes. If you carry rotten food and you package it and put it in a beautiful cooler, does it change the state of the rotten food? It is still rotten. It's only the container. The only thing is that it would deceive more in that state, but it is still rotten food. This is the game Satan has been playing with many people, repackaging destruction in many packages that seem pleasant. And someone will come to the shop of life and destiny, and your eyes will go straight to something that has the power to tear you into pieces. But because it is packaged so beautifully, you will say, "This is what I want." God will respect you. Satan will rejoice with you. You make the choices. And then when you now buy it, you are forced to eat of it because this is what happens. Choose life that you and your children may live.
I had the option of being a serious man of God or otherwise. I have the option of leading God's people with integrity and truth or otherwise. Are we together now? When you choose, it is the conclusion of many, many alternatives that you have thrown away. But the excellency of the decisions and the choices that you make, it is demonstrated in you. See, let me tell you this. You cannot fake choices forever. No, it will catch up with you. The consequences know your address more than DHL. They will find you. You make choices and travel anywhere, they will fish you out. It's not like this one that they say, "Where is your house?" and be going around, you know, the delivery man will be tired because he cannot find where your house is. Even if you decide to go to a place where you are alone, the choices are so powerful with digital precision they will look for you.
For instance, there are people rejecting God now because they want money. Hello, let me have your attention. There are people, the moment you mention anything God or anything church, because they are still 17 years, 25 years, 30 years, they say, "I have time. Don't mind this thing of God." And then they open their eyes and find out they're celebrating 50. And all the children they gave birth to, not one of them is serving God because like father, like son. Are we together now? And then they begin to get angry. What is this?
There are people who made a decision and are making decisions now that they will not be responsible with their lives. They will wake up and find out you are 50, 60 years, you have not built any house. Your grandchildren, your children are still living in one room. With all due respect, one way the devil distracts us and robs us of the power to choose is giving excuses and offense. These two things, excuses and offense, are Satan's weapons of mass destruction. The moment you master the art of giving excuses and then you bring yourself to a life of offense, you will never have the capacity to make quality choices. Why is your prayer life still down? Well, you see, there's no light in my compound. I'm staying in a place where there are many noisy people. And you know how this prayer thing, you need time. Excuses. Are we together? Yes. What did you do with the 5 million naira that they gave you? You know the way this country is. I want to explain something. This rather than taking responsibility to say, "Listen, I wasted it on riotous living. I am a prodigal son. I need help." Hello. The moment the prodigal son made up his mind to choose well, no demon in hell could keep him there. As powerful as Satan is, Satan could mislead him to leave the house. But the boy, can you imagine? No prayer warrior was interceding for him by himself. He said, "I will arise." Where were the spirits when he was going? The devil is not that powerful. It is the manipulation of your understanding that regardless what you choose, he can veto it. Is a lie. If God respects your choice, every other spirit must also respect your choice. He said, "Behold, I stand." Watch this. Behold, I stand at the door of your heart and knock. Who is knocking? God. Satan too knocks. It's just that he doesn't tell you he's knocking. He's too proud to admit that he needs to knock, too. So he will manipulate you into believing, "Give me the keys to your heart," and you give it to him so he can open the door any day and any time. That revelation that God knocks is powerful. Every other spirit that has not been knocking, force it to go behind the door and say, "Knock." And if you hear no, go away. Hallelujah. I will arise and I will go to my father. I will arise from this life of foolishness. I will arise from this misbehavior. Why is it that all good people keep living my life? I think there's just some disfavor. It's a lie. Every you have made up your mind that you would talk anyhow, and people don't want you to be talking anyhow and carelessly. So they take you away from every time they're having their friends come around. If you say, "I'm coming," they say, "Please, you are not invited." It is because of your mouth. It is a self-inflicted curse because once you come there, you will rubbish that meeting, and the business meeting will end up being a wrestling because of something you will say. Choices. You can make up your mind that I will trust God to teach my lips how to speak. I have taught you that everything God gave man, God gave man control over. Say control. >> Please shout it. Say control. >> Control. There is nothing God gave man that God did not give man control. Anything God gave you that you lose control of it, a spirit has taken it over your appetites, your passion, your thinking. If it is God that gave you, he also gave you the power to control it. Is someone learning?
I continue to watch people make bad choices with their lives, destiny-damaging choices, even Christians, and yet they are surprised why certain outcomes continue to recycle. Do you know there are people today, in all honesty, this year was like last year, regardless what prophetic word came, because no prophetic word will veto your ability to choose. Prophetic words are announced so that you will know what God wants to do. Then align your decisions and your choices. Are we together? Deuteronomy chapter 28 and verse 1. It shall come to pass. It's in your Bible. If thou shall hearken. Why would God be explaining it to men? I thought he's all-powerful. If you want to bless, bless God. If you want to curse, curse God. If you want to move Israel out of Egypt, move them. You are almighty. Why does God seem helpless when he's talking with men? Because he gave man one ability that makes man like him: the power to choose. Jesus had the power to say, "God's plans have changed. I will not die for any man. These people are crazy. I'm coming to die for them, and they are not grateful." And God would have respected his choice. I hope you know that. The Bible says he was tempted in every way. "Father, if it be thy will, take this cup from me." He said, "I have the power to call a legion of angels." Many of us right now, the Lord gave me this message to the body of Christ. The decisions that you are making. You can pray and make wrong choices. Your wrong choices will veto your prayer. If God wants to help you, he will send you mercy. Another person will come and influence your mind. Can I tell you your choices will influence you more than your prayer life? Hear what I'm teaching you. Your choices will influence the outcome of your life and destiny more than your prayer life. It is the reason why there is a lot of prayer, with all due respect, that happens in the body of Christ, and yet you do not see people making constructive destiny advancement because many believers just pray as a ritual, but they do not purify their decisions to make word-compliant, pro-destiny decisions. There are people, till the next 10 years, they will still be poor because of their decisions. There are people, till the next 10 years, they will never build a house. With all due respect, there are pastors and leaders, for the next 10 years, they will never rise. And don't say it does not matter. There are individuals whose lives will never make any notable kingdom impact because of decisions. Decisions.
For the way of the Lord is the way of wisdom. I choose the way of the Lord. For the way of the Lord is the way of wisdom. I choose the way of the Lord. You've heard me say it here in Coonia. If you come from a poor family, don't let a poor family come out of you. If you come from a family of witchcraft, don't let witchcraft come out of you. If you were raised, with all due respect, by irresponsible parents, don't waste the time arguing and hating them, and then you wake up and see children all around you, and they call you daddy. You are almost tempted to say, "You are not my children," but time has gone. Many of you right now, you are wasting time in anger. You are wasting time in bitterness. Anger and bitterness do not lead you to your desired heaven. But if you stay there complaining, you will get to 40 years, 50 years, and not make any quality decision. Apostle, I hate my parents because when other people were going to school, they were there around dancing around masquerade, and the result now is all of us are poor. What are you doing about it? They have run their own course. Can I tell you, in my world, I have taught you Coonia, in my world, an adult is not 18 years. I respect that statistics, but it's a deception to many people. There are many, many adults calling themselves children. In my world, the moment you can decide and you have an awareness of the consequences, you become an adult immediately. How soon? Immediately. Let's stop pampering people to produce destructive destinies. You see someone 35 years, 40 years, and he says, "I'm a last one." What does that mean? Of course, I'm not being sarcastic. Yes, thank God that you're so destiny does not care. Ladies and gentlemen, the one who decides, "If it be thou bid me come," he said, "Come." The one who chose to walk out on water was the one who experienced that miracle. Hallelujah. Our world is full of commentators who never make choices and decide. They comment about those making strategic impact, and they cannot jump out of that water. Business people, I'm ashamed of them. Something as easy as this, and they will never do it. Preachers who are talking like, "Ah, that scripture is not really correct," and yet they will never do anything impactful. The world does not reward commentators. It is those who get up and do something with their lives. Are we together?
There are many people who insulted fathers, insulted mothers, parents. Now, now is their turn. Their children are suffering worse conditions. Now, if your father and your mother, with all due respect, lived a mediocre life, the first way out is to find another father and mother who reflects what you want to become. I told you that the principles of followership is twofold. Number one, follow them. Number two, looking onto Jesus. This is how we become in the kingdom. Follow them is the first principle of followership. There are some them that represent where you are going. Do you know why God creates puts leaders in front of you? Those leaders are an attempt to model your future, that where you want to go to. So leaders are a personification of outcomes, a personification of decisions, so that you can see the outcome in the life of others. Seeing somebody fail and then you go and fail again. You are the one who is twice as unwise because they already failed for you. The beauty of leadership is an opportunity to see the scars of people. They will show you their scars that I made this decision and this is a consequence. Now I am teaching you to save you the 20 years I wasted in my own life. A leader will say, and yet many people will not respect it. I have taught you here in Coonia that do not only respect crowns, respect scars. Because both crowns and scars are teachers. Any man you see wearing a crown, look very well beyond the regalia. Look at his hands. You will see a scar. A scar. A testament of wrong decisions. A testament of endurance. Sometimes a testament of right decisions. Is someone learning? >> Yes sir. >> Ask bring sample 10 young believers. Someone who would tell you, "I'm going to be a great man of God." And ask him, "What are you doing now?" He will tell you, "Well, uh, once in a while, I listen to some messages if I have the time to, and then I just know what I'm focused on writing what God told me." My dear minister in the making, you will never arrive there by that behavior. No. No. There are many like you who wished ministry. Unfortunately, it does not happen by wishing. The Bible says, "Walk out your own salvation with fear and trembling." Walk it out. Hallelujah.
There are many gentlemen right now, they cannot tell me the last time they read a book, a quality pro-destiny book. Many gentlemen cannot tell the last time they open themselves to receive quality strategic mentorship. Receiving mentorship at your terms is a joke. You will never amount to anything. It's like a teacher, a student telling the teacher, "I'm not ready to learn now. Just be patient. Allow me rest. When I'm ready, I will call you." Jesus says nonsense. Are we together? How many people are poor and broke today but will never respect the wisdom that comes from people who have been helped by God? No. Hallelujah. You want to become a great mother, and you see a woman who is exceptional with her home and her children, and you disrespect them. Do you know every time I see great people, I look past their results? I want to buy into their mindset because their results are consequences. Did you hear that? Their results are consequences. There are decisions that led there. And I want to hear it. What is your understanding like? What are your decision-making processes like? Man of God, what decisions have you made that brought such power, such grace, such influence to your life? Let me sing that song again. For the way of the Lord is the way of wisdom. I choose the way of the Lord.
Now, let me tell you this. I came from an evangelical background, and being that my whole training and my exposure in ministry was from the northern middle belt and context, you know, we got that foundation of character, moral excellence. But there were certain things about administrative excellence that I did not have the opportunity to see because of the background. As God began to expose me to a global audience, I knew that there were some things I did not get by the advantage of my background, and that I will have to reinvent myself. And so back to the formula of followership, follow them, looking onto Jesus. There are things that them cannot teach you because the them too are students. It's just that they have gone ahead. Are we together? And I began to learn administrative principles. These are things that you do not get just by impartation. No, you get by knowledge. Serious, constructive, definite knowledge. And I started getting the materials, opening up myself to the various trainings, in addition to being a man of God, to become an effective leader, leader of resources, leader of people. You see that now? You want God to trust you to manage his resources, and all you have is a sincere heart. That is good, but that is not enough. No, the dynamics of managing resources, resources there being both human and material resources. This one is a learned skill. It comes by training. It is not just a gift. Hallelujah.
There are many believers who are trusting God for increase and promotion. You want to pastor 100 members. There is a skill to pastor 100 members. You want to pastor a thousand members with the mentality of the one who pastors a 100 members. No. God loves his sheep too much. He will not trust you with that kind of thing. There is something you need to know. The dynamics of conflict resolution. The dynamics of people management. There are several things you need to learn at an elevated state. In addition to prayer, fasting, and the ministry of the word, decisions. What is the difference between someone who is running a big shopping mall and another person who is struggling with a small shop? It's not just exposure; it's their decisions. The person small there is either starting small, or he has refused to grow. Refusal to grow is a decision, and God and life can respect it. But the consequences that come with stuntedness will also meet you there. May the Lord bless you in Jesus name. May the hand of God rest upon you. I declare that your choices and your decisions from today will begin to lead you towards purpose, will begin to lead you towards destiny. And any wrong choice you have made right now and you are being trapped by it, may the God who delivers men bring you out of it now. Bring you out of it now. From tonight, receive grace to begin to make quality choices in the name of Jesus Christ. For some of you, one decision you will make after this service, it will give you one year's worth of testimonies. I say it again, one decision you will make after this service will give you one year's worth of testimonies. You are blessed and you remain blessed. You are lifted and you remain lifted. May you enjoy wealth and prosperity. May you enjoy a rich fellowship with the Holy Spirit. May you enjoy favor with God and with men. May you enjoy liftings on all sides. It is well with you. Nothing dies in your hands. Return by next week a testimony in Jesus matchless name we pray.