Allow me for a few minutes to introduce you to someone. A long time ago in Rhodesia, there was a man named Robert Ncube, he was a handsome young man having a determination to be somebody in life. On the 28th of September 1975, he met with this stunning Lady, who eventually became the Love of his life. This lady, I tell you was just beautiful, and so cute-her name was Josephine Nkomo. Now to cut a long story short, these guys got married, and they had their first child on the 30th of November 1978. Now it so happened, (I hope I'll say this correctly) that out of their plan, unfortunately at one time when they had not yet planned to have a second child they fell in love and the mother conceived (I don't know whether you will call this child "accident baby" or what). Anyway to the shock of the Father, he didn't what to admit that they were having their second child, so he then resorted to go to a N'ganga (witchdoctor) to really get to understand what was exactly happening. When they got there, the father, the mother and this untimely baby, the witchdoctor said " Indeed there is no baby here (I'm sure that's what the father expected), it's just blood that has clotted." So this witchdoctor decided to give them some medicine that would destroy this clotted blood or technically that would arbort this " clotted blood in the "womb" Well they took the medicine and the mother drank the portion, and she really suffered! The pain was unbearable but amazingly "the clotted blood" did not come out. The mother was supposed to get another portion (I believe a much stronger one this time) but she had to face the wrath of the father and jeorpadise her marriage by refusing to go for the second time. It was then later realised that surely the mother was pregnant, and so the days drew closer for this (now miraculous) baby to be born.
Suprising enough, on the 22nd of January 1981, the mother was coming from work, and what is utterly amazing is that she had not yet gone for martenity leave, when it was almost time for the baby to be born. To make matters worse, she hadn't registered for the delivery of the baby. This, allow me to say, was done by a mother who was a nurse! Late evening, the mother started to travail as she got into labour, and when she got to the hospital after a struggle, with the father who was saying she was acting it all up, the nurses said they cannot do anything for her since she was not registered for delivering at that hospital (It was at Mpilo Hospital). I'm quite sure miraculously again, she ended up giving birth to a baby boy.
The father was shocked! He couldn't imagine that he could have been a murderer to such an innocent child. The father then told the mother of the child that when she was to get the birth certificate for the miraculous child, she should come for the name of the child. And he surely had the name , the child was then named MEHLULI meaning CONQUEROR.
And, I'd like you to meet Mehluli Ncube, the very " untimely baby " sharing this message with you.
Let me tell you what, the very hand of the Lord was upon me all that time. I'm sure when the N'ganga said " it's just blood that has clotted " he was seeing the blood stained hand of the Lord over my whole body. The devil wanted me to be destroyed but God said NO! and then he let his right hand over my life. That's why God says " My hand is not short that it can not save..."
The hand of the Lord is rightly available to change every situation for our very good.
Sometimes you ought to realise that we are not " coincident " people, it's not a mistake that you be born at a particular time, It's a God set-up! Maybe you might have been born under crazy situations, maybe your father is a rapist, your mother was raped and you happened to come about. Maybe your parents can say it was really a big mistake that we had you, let me tell you something it's not a mistake that you were born! God saidsaid, " I knew you before you were in your mother's womb..." Jeremiah 1v5. What God knew was you first, before your mother's womb and he was so interested in you so much that he couldn't have afforded to miss a chance for you to be born, you had to be born. To God "how you were born" is not an issue, BUT "who was born." You see when God says I knew you before, he means " I had an experience with you AND I saw that you were Quality and you Qualify!" God tried you in every area and saw that this person is fit to be a world shaker and history maker, that's why he had to make sure that he gives you the very exact and distinct finger prints, so that you will never ever be someone like you ever! That's why when you were born they didn't say " Congratulation, you have an OLD baby!" NO! They said NEW for " we have not yet seen something like this before, it's really new." Look at yourself, you can turn upside down still to find that you're the only copy, the very original. If God loses that original, he has lost it forever, because he has no copy of it.
So, how you were born doesn't matter, it's who was born that matters. So don't ever look down upon yourself ever. That is the reason why the Hand of the Lord was protecting you from all the attacks that could have killed you whilst still young, up to now. It's really amazing that Jeptha, the son of a Harlot, was a might man of valour (yea that was no misprint Jeptha was indeed a son a Harlot, Judges 11v1-11). After they had chased him away they later went after him and beckoned him that he might be their ruler. I then realised something so awesome that was upon him something about the Hand of Lord upon him which made him a mighty man of valour. Then it dawned on me that, when the hand of the Lord is upon you, then you've got an upper hand over anything in life, you don't need to be anybody to change situations, It don't matter whether you're divorced or not, married or not, widow or widower or not, learned or not, rich or poor!
God then revealed this scripture to me, Psalm 16v11;
"...in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures forever more."
Let me define something here;
Joy is a delight of the mind arising from the consideration of a present or assured possession of a good future. When moderate it is gladness. Now joy is some form of Hebrew word "gîl " to " leap" or " spin around " with pleasure. Now this spiritual joy is permanent (John 16v22) and unspeakable (1 Peter 1v8).
So when David speaks of the fullness of joy in the presence of the Lord, he speaks of a leaping and a spinning around! I'm sure that's the reason why when the ark of the covenant of the Lord was coming back to it's resting place that David leaped and spinned around until Michal her wife despised him. Most of the times I've realised that when God's presence is manifest in the middle of the service, you begin to see people acting crazy, leaping and spinning around. Sometimes you don't want to, but you just can't help dancing because somebody is in the house, you just begin to have an assured possession of a good future regardless of what the bankbook says because He says that it shall be well with the saints. Maybe you've felt like that once or twice, when you felt so hopeless and so low and you didn't have it all with you-when suddenly somebody paid you a visit, when somebody, just in time popped in, you begin to realise and acknowledge their presence around you, you sense some security. It's then that you square up your shoulders, and stand up like one possessing all things because he says it shall be well with the righteous of the Lord. It doesn't matter whether in the presence of calamity or lack, in the presence of a stressing problem, or whatever situation, but when the presence of God chips in, my my my, there's a spinning around! There's a turn around! There's an absolute turning point, a change of a situation only just because of his presence, with a hand full of pleasures.
In 1 Chronicles 6v4, the word says;
"4 And he said: 'Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who has fulfilled with His hands what He spoke with His mouth to my father David...'"
You see, one beautiful thing about God is that he is so practical! Yes he is so practical to practical. He speaks with His mouth, communicating His will, and getting down to business with his hand and getting dirty to perfect that which concerns us. So for every word that God has said, he is yet to fulfil with his hands. Many a times we hear in scripture that the Master stretched out his hand and touched those that needed to be touched, healing those that needed to be healed, He didn't just say people need to eat, give ye them to eat. He went further than that, he took the small 2 loaves and 5 fishes by his hand and multiplied them, he didn't just add them, He multiplied them tremendously. I've come sometimes to situations that had only 5 loaves and 2 fish, and surely there would have nothing that I could have done, but something changed the situations-the hand of the Lord!
I remember one time during a service we were getting into the time of offerings, and I had only left in my wallet and I was doing spiritual warfare within myself-to give or not to give? That was all that I had to use for bus-fare to go to work, and don't come back home, but after being convinced of the word of God in Matthew 6v25-34, I gave it all to God. Maybe you might consider this a small thing but as for me, I've lived not to despise the day of small things (Zechariah 4v10).The Lord took my small 5 loaves and 2 fish and he began to do Calculus on them, multiplication on them, and guess what, when the week started, I had such as was enough for the whole week, including lunch! I really don't know exactly what happens when the Hand of the Lord is upon you, but what I know and what I've experienced is that situations are changed. The wallet could have testified and said we don't have any money, but God said we've got money in our heavenly account, you're a Billionaire boy! When you let all that you have, fall in the hands of the Lord, your life, your family, your partner, your finances, your future, there is a turning around for the situation.
You see, the hand has five finger, 1,2,3,4,5 fingers. If you let those fingers cuddle you up, touch you (touch means; affecting with tender feeling, establishing a relation towards) those five fingers for 'peace' will be upon you, Peace is P-E-A-C-E, for the 5 fingers of God. The hand of peace will be upon you to perfect that which he spoke of, in his word. God wants to affect you with tender feelings, he wants to establish a relation towards you, so unique and so wonderful. I remember very well the life that I lived before I turned back again to God, that I had no peace. Whenever there was a crime committed at my school I used to be so scared that I might be found to be a culprit even though I knew that I didn't do anything. But when the Hand of the Lord came upon my life, the first thing that was restored was peace, because the hand of peace was upon me. I'm telling you I could afford a smile when a smile was the most expensive thing that one could get, when situations demanded that I cry, I could afford a laugh because the very hand of peace was upon me.
Hebrews 11v3 says;
"...we understand that the worlds [during the successive ages] were framed (fashioned, put in order, and equipped for their intended purpose) by the word of God..." and, John 1v3-4 speaking of the Word says;
"3 All things were made and came into existence through Him; and without Him was not even one thing made that has come into being. 4 In Him was Life, and the Life was the Light of men. " (Amplified Bible)
Now I got to realise that the Hand of the Lord is more than what one can Imagine. It is the very hand that in the begin went down, took clay and moulded man artistically in the very image of God. It is that same hand that took a rib out of Adam, and fearfully made Eve, the very hand with pleasures for ever more. It is the very hand that was scarred, dirtied so that man might be cleansed, it is J-E-S-U-S, the five fingered hand of God. It is the hand that wrote; "MENE MENE TEKEL, UPARSIN" at some point in time, that even continues to do so to the plans of the devil. It is the hand that was protecting me from abortive medicine of the N'ganga, it is the Hand of God that was nailed at my place on the old rugged cross. It is the hand that is always desiring to affect us with tender feeling, that wants to establish a relation towards us.
David surely said "...at thine right hand are pleasures forevermore."
The scripture in Hebrews 1v3 says;
"3... God the Father seated Jesus at the right hand of the Majesty on high..."
So what are those pleasures at God's right hand...Jesus Christ, with his anointing!
I'm sure when David picked those 5 smooth stones, he knew what he was doing, he didn't pick them up by coincidence. He knew that in the hand of the Lord there are 1-2-3-4-5 fingers. That's why he said to Goliath " ...but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of Hosts..." And he meant it!
The name above all names, the name that changes ALL situations, the name J-E-S-U-S!
He approached Goliath saying; " There is slaying of Giants in 1-2-3-4-5 stones, there is slaying of Giants in the name of J-E-S-U-S, there is P-O-W-E-R in the name of J-E-S-U-S, G-L-O-R-Y in the name of J-E-S-U-S, the hand of the Lord is resting upon me Goliath, and I've come to change situations!"
That’s why God the Father gave His son, the name above all names, that at the mention of the name of Jesus, every kind of situation bows down, every situation confesses that He is Lord. Every darkness has to bow down because the L-I-G-H-T of God will be upon you, his G-L-O-R-Y will be cuddling your head, just like in Isaiah 60v1 where the word says;
"1 ARISE, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee."
That's why Jesus says, allow the little children to come to me-because He wants to B-L-E-S-S us and bestow his G-L-O-R-Y and his P-O-W-E-R upon us! He wants us to have the POWER to change all manner of situation. It was then that I understood it, that's the only thing that can change situations, the Hand of the Lord, with that creative power that changed form-less world into such a beauty.
I remember one day at school in 1999 (Manama High School), it was on a Saturday night that a Disco was scheduled to play. Now, since it was compulsory for everyone to attend, I was preparing to go there (we used to group as Christians in a quiet corner, in the hall and fellowship like crazy while the others were dancing like crazy). As I was preparing to go, the Holy Ghost laid a burden in my heart and I started to interceed, praying against wickedness that could take place during the disco. I felt the burden so strong, and I felt the Holy Ghost praying in me through groanings, so much that I had to delay in going to the Disco. As I was approaching the hall, I then realised why the burden was so heavy! The Lights in the hall, where the disco was, were off. This to me was too awful, as I knew what it meant to the pupils, it meant they could do anything in that dark hall dancing their hearts out, and unfortunately their lives out. As I continued to interceed, they turned on the lights, at-least it was a prayer that had produced half the results.
I've always defined F-A-I-T-H (1,2,3,4,5) as; the hand of God that grabs things from our heavenly store house unto us, as we get all things through faith. So, I felt this supernatural hand of F-A-I-T-H upon me and I knew that It was high time to dictate the pace!
It was high time that they had to dance to my music now!
I said; " God, you can as well scrap this disco off, so that your people may not sin against you." You see, I had learnt at that school for 6 full years, and I knew what I meant when I said ' that they may not sin against you ' because I was once so active in that.
I remember that only 2 songs had played when the disco stopped playing. To me, it was " Now it's a turn around now! (because somebody was in the house now to give us a turn around)" It was just after a few minutes when there was an announcement that; all the girls had to dismiss and go to their dormitories as the disco was over!, can you imagine that, just after warming up...
I later understood what had happened; The hand of P-O-W-E-R had got to the machine, and took hold of the cords and messed them up, and the machine blew up! WOW!!! Now that's the P-O-W-E-R that changes situations, it doesn't matter whether it's in a Disco the Hand of God can show up to change situations, there is just no boundary for the Power that changes situations, it just changes them regardless of place, even in discos there is a turning around!
That's the reason why God says His Hand is not shortened that it can not save! God is just so willing to stretch out his hand over us, that we may experience of the power, of the glory of God.
Indeed David rightly said at God's right hand there are pleasures for ever more. Let me tell you something, these are the pleasures that change ALL situations. I believe that I am what I am because of His Hand that took me from the deep miry clay and set me upon the rock. If such a hand changed my hopeless situation, I'm quite sure it can there is no situation that can stand in your way. Surely therein lies the Power we need because, it is the Hand of Power itself. That Hand is the hand of G-R-A-C-E, is so much bestows the grace of God over us.
The Word says in 2 Corinthians 12v9;
"9...My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness..."
When we get to grasp the idea of grace, it's when we realise that God unleashes his power at our point of weakness, were only undeserved favour is in action. When you think that you're a loser you have lost it all, when you look at your situation and figure out that you've failed, it is then that his hand of G-R-A-C-E starts hovering and brooding over your situation. It's then that God's strength, (not your strength) is made perfect.
I truly admit that on my own I could never have even started anything, even living life, without the hand of G-R-A-C-E over my life I'm useless, the devil knows that! He also knows that I am what I am because of this hand upon me. I could have been destroyed in my mother's womb, but the hand of grace was upon me, as weak as I was, God's strength showed up to change my situation. Sometime, in life God will want you to admit that you are nothing and that He is Everything, and I'm telling you the moment you begin to realise that (who he is, who you are), then he begins to reveal himself and honestly sometimes you cannot contain what he reveals, except that his hand of grace be upon you, like he did to Moses in Exodus 33v20-22.
This hand is also the hand of M-E-R-C-Y. God says that His mercies are new very morning-His hand wants to affect you with tender feelings every morning, a new touch for every morning. It now reminds me of what Jesus said in Matthew 6v9-13 in the Lord's prayer;
"9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven...Give us this day our daily bread."
For every day Jesus knew that we rightly needed a new thing-we need a daily portion of bread (not only physically but spiritually), daily portion of "the anointing," that's why David says in Psalm 91v10 speaks of fresh oil. For everyday we also need the hand of M-E-R-C-Y upon us, and praise God for the word says "His mercies are new every morning." One so profound truth about this M-E-R-C-Y is that; M-E-R-C-Y refused and love took my place on the cross, where justice met G-R-A-C-E. M-E-R-C-Y refused to let me die! Jesus the lamb was crucified on my place. Though rightfully death wanted me but, M-E-R-C-Y refused with me. The hand of M-E-R-C-Y refused with me when the portion from the N'ganga wanted me, M-E-R-C-Y said "No! you wont have him, I want to affect him with P-O-W-E-R and G-L-O-R-Y of the Lord to change situations 'wherever the sole of his foot step upon' I want him to be a world shaker and history maker, No No No you wont have him! He's mine"
Why don't you let the Hand of the Lord rest upon you, why not let him affect you, so that you may affect the Nation, your neighbourhood, your family, your boss, your kids, your partner. Honestly, you can never do anything own your own, except that you be like Ezekiel, who says the Hand of the Lord was upon me and it took me to a valley full of dry bones that I might go and change situations. For him to prophesy to the bones, it needed the Hand of Power to be upon him. My friend, that's the very power that changes situation, and so beloved of the Lord let's arise turn the tables up-side down, as we change situations, leading captivity captive! Let this be your prayer; that His hand be upon you, that you may have the power to change any adverse situation coming your way, no-matter how grey-haired the situation could be. Remember that;
In God's vocabulary, the word 'impossible' doesn't exist:
ALL SITUATIONS CAN BE CHANGED!
