I must say it's as if she had a glimpse into what the Lord had prepared me to talk about. I later Read from Galatians 5: 16-26 and talked about "Self-Discipline" emphasizing the fact that as Christian believers, we have the Holy Spirit permanently resident in us. This means we have the potential to live by the Spirit and in obedience to God, even though our default nature tends towards disobedience as all mankind is born in sin(Romans 3:23). That is why Paul encourages us in Galatians 5:16-18 to live in the Spirit.
The essence of Romans 12:1-2 is that we ought to walk in self-discipline, keeping our bodies holy unto the Lord, understanding the will of God and then renewing our minds to conform to God's perfet will. This is ultimate obedience. We must remember that it is God who even works in us to will and to do according to His good purpose (Philippians 2:13). On our own we are incapable of walking in obedience, yet we have a part to play as we allow he Holy Spirit to help us along the way. He is the best teacher and helper. For those who are not yet in Christ, I stressed that the initial step is to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, through faith.
As Christian believers, if we live and walk in the Spirit, our lives will manifest the fruit of the Spirit. We are then not subject to punishment, neither by God, nor man. I went further to challenge all the students to determine to practice self-control which is one of the fruit of the Spirit. It statrs with acts that may seem less significant like deciding to wash dishes at home instead of watching a TV program that is not neither educative nor informative. With time, one becomes capable of making the right choices in more challenging circumstances e.g. when one has to decide whether or not to join the majority students in destroying school property.
I concluded by proposing that if we all lived by the Spirit, our lives manifesting the fruit of the Spirit, and thus in obedience to God and all godly authority and discipline, there would be no need for punishment. This would mean no need for discussions or debates as we've had in this country in recent past as to whether we should or should not have "Corporal Punishment" in our schools. Such debates, if you ask me, are not addressing the core issue. The fundamental approach would be to facilitate people encoutering true transformation through Christ. Only then can human beings be truely disciplined and obedient.
The Student leader Teaching on the Fruit of the Spirit.
Thereafter it was a time for Praise. We danced, jumped and made joyful noice unto the Lord! Below are the girls leading the session of Praise.
Following Praise was a time of Worship. Below are the girls leading Worship and the students engrossed in deep Worship of the Lord.
Then it was time for presentations. several student groups and ndividuals glorified God with their gifts and talents. Below are some of the girls' doing their presentations.
Below is the Christian Union (CU) Choir doing their presentation.
At the beginning I almost thought I was alone, but during the time for presentations I was joined by two young people from the Petram Ministries. This is a ministry that also reaches out to students like CML. Here they are introducing themselves and giving information about their forthcoming Students Camp to be held in December.
Then it was my turn to share the Word. I must be emphasizing a point.
The girls are paying close attention!
After my teaching session, I invited the young man from Petram to conclude with a word of Prayer. We all said the Grace and the main meeting was called to an end after the announcements.
But as it is their custom, the CU Leadership at St. George's usually have brief meeting after the Sunday Service. Below are leaders meeting for prayers, encouragement, planning and briefings.
This is the Praise and Worship Team.
The Servants Team group meetings.
The CU Leadership team meeting the Petram Ministry representatives for more information about their Camp.
At the end, these girls just loved taking photos.
We had a blessed time and God is Glorified in all.
No comments:
Post a Comment