Sure Blessings

I preached from Genesis 22 yesterday to one of the first SIB churches founded just after Second World War. I could see in the church four generations of Christians, the few early converts in their 90s, the leaders 2nd generation believers in their fifties or early sixties, the young adults and youths the 3rd generation Christians and the children some 80 of them of the fourth generation. I shared a message titled "God's abundant blessings for him/her who listens to God's voice.
I did not realize as I stopped that I had preached some 50 minutes from 10.20am to 11.10am. I spoke about God promising to abundantly bless Abraham because he obeyed the voice of the Lord. It is not enough just to be blessed but to enter into God's abundant blessings. I did not mean that it only involved monetary blessings or material things but first I spoke from Prov 29,6 that the righteous sings and rejoices. It is surely abundant blessing to experience God's presence and be joyful before him.

I related how I danced along with the Dusun song we just sang and told them that it was their song and dance since I am not of an indigenous tribe. My challenge was that if I could do it so could they and after the sermon we sang the Dusun song once more and there was abundant joy and the chairman who sat next to me had to dance perhaps just to accompany me. I did not do it for show but when I sensed God's presence I wanted to dance like David did as an act of worship.

Then I shared with them how I received abundant blessings by obeying God's voice. First as a young University student, then I shared about how when I turned 50 years old 3 years ago I heard the Lord speaking to me to return to my homeland and inheritance from Lev 26 about the Jubilee's commands. I shared how I obeyed God several times when I was Acting Principal and manifold blessings flowed from the publication of the College magazine. I shared with them about the day I started the English Advance class early this year as I felt the Lord had wanted me to do and a donor banked into my account a few thousand dollars that very day.

I also spoke about the second part of God's promise to Abraham to multiply his descendants like the stars in the sky and I shared with them how both churches I pastored grew solidly over time. In fact in my Ranau church towards the end of 2015 in less than a year was averaging 400 adults in two services meeting in one shop lot unit of 1,200sq foot. I told them that God wanted the church to grow in quality and in quantity. I told them to believe God and obeyed His voice when He called us to go forth in mission and good works.