Message of the Week: Power for Service

Sam Adeyemi

Acts 10:38

Survival is the main drive of human existence. Even our national systems are tailored towards man's survival. The highest levels of fulfillment we will ever obtain, however, will be from by meeting other people's needs and not just our own. Jesus instructed us not to fret about our mundane needs in life because they will be taken care of, provided our focus is on establishing God's values and principles on earth. The investments of God in our lives are too enormous for us to expend all of them on ourselves, we need to use them to serve other people and generally add value to this world.

Jesus exemplified God's system of living on the earth by raising the dead, healing sicknesses, providing food, imparting knowledge and revelation etc. He further admonished that it is more blessed to give than to receive. We can choose either to be self-centered or to add value to people's lives by solving their problems. Our world will always be imperfect and troubles will remain as long as the devil is around but with the Holy Spirit resident in us; we have capacity to solve these problems for people.

Luke 4:17-19 highlights the purpose for Jesus' anointing, which was to meet needs and solve problems and not just for Himself. He was different from today’s Christians in our nation who want to be anointed only to get their needs met. The essence of the anointing is solely for solving problems with supernatural ability. The anointing and selfishness don't go together. Problem solving is the quickest route to leadership. Our rewards are determined by the problems we can solve. Promotion is a reward for solving problems. Matthew 6:33 portrays the rewards as benefits and not the main thing to expend the anointing on.

Being anointed frees you from being a liability to anyone; instead, you become the one addressing their challenges and adding value to them. Having the Holy Spirit bestows us with extraordinary capacity but our thinking needs to be transformed by the renewing of our minds as well. When we recognized that we are assets to God, all we need to fulfill God's bidding will be provided.

1 Corinthians 12:4-9 lists the gifts of the Holy Spirit which are given to us for the common good of all; they include the Word of Wisdom, Word of Knowledge, Faith, Healing, Working of Miracles, Prophecy, Discerning of spirits, Different kinds of Tongues and Interpretation of Tongues. The Holy Spirit determines what gift to give each person. With the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we will not function below capacity. It is, however, necessary to:

1. Recognize your gifts i.e. what works effortlessly for you.

2. Use your gifts; take advantage of every opportunity to solve a problem for someone.  

3. More importantly, let love be your motivation to solve problems. Don't seek the power of God for selfish purposes; the anointing gives us the power to serve others beyond our human ability.