Dare to be Different.

“Jesus began to say, “This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Jonah. For as Jonah became a sign to the men of Nineveh, so will the Son of man be to this generation.”

Excerpt, Gospel Reading, Monday 14th October 2024 – LUKE 11:29-32.

So, just assuming a reigning artiste or musician is scheduled to perform in a particular locality.

Ahead of their coning, there will be hypes about the event mostly on the radio, the television and very recently on the social media also.

Promotional contents for the event may mostly be like this – “Other side attractions include rib-cracking comedy performance from so, and so, fashion parade and lots and lots of gift items to be won at our surprise raffle draw. Don’t be left out, if you snooze, you lose.”

Amazingly, church programmes have also taken to the same kind of hypes. Even a mere Sunday service is not left out.

Then, there will be stuffs like this that form part of the contents for the promotion of the event – “There will be music ministration by this and that as well as the dash, dash, dash ministries angelic choir. Miracles, signs and wonders shall abound. Come one, come all.”

Another equally disturbing trend is the fact that the artiste or musician invited for this church programme could be a complete secular artiste with many blatant ‘knacking’ songs to their credit.

Possibly just because they have a popular song that mentions in passing the phrase ‘thank you Jesus’ or the word ‘alleluiah’, then, that qualifies them to be invited for a supposed music ministration for a church programme or for a Sunday service.

Dear friend, the hypes men and hypes-style deplored for promoting secular events are now used for church programmes even for Sunday service.

However, we mustn’t be quick to wanting to condemn anyone or point fingers as to whose guilt it might be.

This has to start with us. If we haven’ permitted such, they wouldn’t be happening.

If we are not thrilled by the razzmatazz of miracles, signs and wonders, and we go seeking for them, they will not be used as baits to lure us do gullible fishes.

If the thrills of wanting to get quality entertainment in our supposed worship centres is not what goads us to accept to convene but the worship of God in truth and in spirit, then, the presence of a popular artiste or musician or not wouldn’t be the push that gets us to want to congregate for worship.

My dear friend, until we curb our taste and voracious appetites, those leading us by our noses too will have no reason to want to take a rest.

Christ in today’s teaching says of us that we are, “An evil generation.” My dear friend, we must dare to be different and extricate ourselves from such a generation.

Have a fantastic day and a fulfilled week ahead folks.

Blessed_Carlo_Acutis! #Pray_for_us!

  • Akase F. Agabo
  • 14th Oct. 2024.

A Pattern for Living.

“Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. TGive us each day our daily bread; and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive every one who is indebted to us; and lead us not into temptation.”

Excerpt, Gospel Reading, Wednesday 9th October 2024 – LUKE 11:1-4.

So, firstly, prayer is really good and absolutely important because it is very efficacious. That is why even Christ Himself prayed.

Notwithstanding, as there’s a pattern to all things, so, it is also with prayer. It is for this reason that John-de-Baptist taught his disciples how to pray and in today’s teaching Christ Jesus also taught his disciples and by extension we, too, how to pray.

Christ taught us the Lord’s Prayer, the one we popularly call the ‘Our Father.”

The Lord’s Prayer is not just a pattern of how to pray, it is equally our prescribed lifestyle.

The life style pattern is, praising God, committing the whole of our being to Him.

Then trusting Him completely with the whole of our being. And forgiving others who failed us as much as we seek forgiveness from Him.

And having Him and Him alone as our guard, guide and source of protection.

And we do all of these with absolute faith.

Dear friend, when you say that Prayer (Our Father) today again, meditative say it and try to visualise each word.

May the Good Lord meet all of us at our point of need.

Have a fantastic day folks.

#Blessed_Carlo_Acutis! #Pray_for_us!

-Akase F. Agabo
9th Oct. 2024.

The One True Gospel.

“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and turning to a different gospel — not that there is another gospel, but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we preached to you, let him be accursed.”

Excerpt, First Reading, Monday 7th October 2024 – GALATIANS 1:6-12.

So, technology has made living very easy. Take communications for example. We know where we used to be before the year 2001.

Consequently, the same technological advancement is equally getting some of us somewhat lazy.

The successes achieved technology-wise in the world, we now want to make them transcend into our actual abstract every day life and living.

A preacher man tells members of their congregation that they are going to make overnight wealth and they quickly believe and hang on every of his words.

Another one tell members of his congregation to bring all sick people to the church and never to seek medical attention at health care facilities and hospitals.

Meanwhile, the same person would fly abroad for the slightest medical attention in the best hospitals in the world.

Are we now all getting perversely stupefied?

Dear friend, any wealth that we did not work for and isn’t a rightful inheritance, it is always not deep rooted, it fritter away as fast as it came.

The knowledge of medical treatment was conferred on us by the Almighty God.

Therefore, my dear friend, when you or any one of yours fall ill, quickly go to the hospital or the nearest health care facility to seek medical attention.

Believing in prosperity preaching and refusing to seek medical attention when we are ill is stupidly falling victim of the fake gospel Saint Paul cries about in today’s teaching.

Mother Mary Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, we implore your constant intercession never to yield to any contrary gospel.

Have a fantastic day folks and a fulfilled week ahead.

OUR_LADY_OF_THE_ROSARY! #Blessed_Carlo_Acutis! #Pray_for_us!

  • Akase F. Agabo
    7th Oct. 2024.

He Alone Knows Our Tommorow.

“The Lord answered Job . . . . . . . . . . . . out of the whirlwind: “Have you commanded the morning since your days began, and caused the dawn to know its place, . . . . . . . . . . . . Have you entered into the springs of the sea, or walked in the recesses of the deep? Have the gates of death been revealed to you, or have you seen the gates of deep darkness? Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth? . . . . . . . . . . Then Job answered the Lord: “Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you? I lay my hand on my mouth. . . . . . . . . . . . I will proceed no further.”

Excerpts, First Reading, Friday 4th October 2024 – JOB 38:1.12-21; 40:3-5.

So, often times when some kind of adversity or the other befalls us, we are quick to follow the path of unbelievers and question God, saying, “O Lord, why me?”

If Joseph was not so maltreated by his brothers and sold into slavery, how would he have become Governor in a far away land and even help to save his family from starvation?

God works in mysterious ways. He alone knows our tomorrow from today.

A little scratch gets us wailing and lamenting and asking God, “Why me?”

Such might have happened to forestall a fatal adversity that could have befallen us or to prepare us for a greater task ahead (like Joseph) or both.

Dear friend, as believers, whatever happens to us, good or otherwise was very likely permitted by God.

Therefore, anything that happens to us, good or otherwise, we must thank God. He Who is our beneficent, He alone Who knows our tomorrow from today.

Folks, have a fantastic day and a pleasant weekend.

#SAINT_FRANCIS_OF_ASSISI! #Blessed_Carlo_Acutis! #Pray_for_us!

-Akase F. Agabo. 4th OCT. 2024.

Beware the Kingdom of God

“But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off against you; nevertheless know this that the kingdom of God has come near. ’ I tell you, it shall be more tolerable on that day for Sodom than for that town.”

Excerpt, Gospel Reading, Thursday 3rd October 2024 – LUKE 10:1-12.

So, the streets as well as life as a whole is not the same for someone who grew up with a father than one who grew up without a father. And this is without prejudice to an actual good father or a father figure.

A person from a good home, raised with both parents who ensured they never lacked the basic necessities of life but chose to go the way of wrath, the streets and life in general is more harsh and intolerable for them than one raised from the streets.

Today’s teaching is akin to the above assertions.

It shall be more tolerable for the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah than for those cities which the message of the kingdom of God was preached to and they rejected it.

Dear friend, we must carefully check and ensure that we are not such cities.

Have a fantastic day folks.

#Blessed_Carlo_Acutis! #Pray_for_us!

-Akase F. Agabo
3rd Oct. 2024.

Blindly Trusting in God.

“The disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them, and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Excerpt, Gospel Reading, Wednesday 2nd Oct. 2024 – MATTHEW 18:1-5.

So, since we all were once children, we must be conversant with the fact that children have a 100% trust in their parents.

Children look on to their parents for everything and more often than not parents strive to fulfil all that are needed by their children.

That’s why a parent might starve just to ensure that their ward(s) have something to eat.

Parents do not regard taking care of their children only just as an obligation but as fulfilment of a right to them.

All these are the more reasons children look on to their parents with confidence that their needs and sometimes even their wants would be satisfied.

The Almighty God in today’s teaching says, for us to make it into the kingdom He has prepared for us, we must, like children, have a blind trust in Him.

May God avail us His grace to permit His will to be realised in our life.

And may our deliberate and reflex actions never cause our guardian angels to shy away from us.

Have a fantastic day folks.

HOLY_GUARDIAN_ANGELS! #Blessed_Carlo_Acutis! #Pray_for_us!

  • Akase F. Agabo
    2nd Oct. 2024.