Written by Uyoyou Christiana Charles-Iyoha
In Acts Chapter 3 verses 1 to 9, and 16, note verse 7, the Bible records that the feet
and ankle bones of the lame man received strength and the man who had never
walked from birth leaped up, stood and walked and entered the temple with Peter
and John, walking, leaping and praising God.
Beloved, God is awesome. This man was daily laid at
the gate of the temple called Beautiful to ask for alms. So close to the temple
yet he had never been inside of the temple. Daily, he saw people go into the
temple to transact real business with God, worship God, ask God for
forgiveness, cleansing, healing, deliverance, provision, promotion, wealth,
favor, children, peace in their personal, family, community and national lives;
academic excellence and prowess, military prowess and success, you name it; yet
he had never seen the inside of the temple. He had never come close to
transacting business with God yet God was so near, was with him, sitting by and
with him all the time, waiting for him to transact quality business, real
business with God but Mr. Lame from birth knew and understood only one
business; unfortunately the business which did not move him from point A to B;
but kept him stuck in a spot where he daily lived on and at the mercy of those
whose hearts responded to his daily pleas for alms.
He lived for and on the mercy and compassion of
people – without alms; he could probably never survive simply because there was
no strength in his feet and ankle bones. His entire life was subject to the
mercy and compassion of humans and knowing that humans are sometimes subject to
fickle mindedness and vindictiveness, the man’s daily bread was not always
guaranteed. So his mental processes were always fixated on alms; let someone
bless me with, please forgive my choice of words – peanuts to go through today.
That is just all that I need today. After all, I will be back here tomorrow and
someone will give me what I need tomorrow.
Pathetic and tragic is the fact that his mental
processes could not rise beyond asking for alms on a daily basis to survive
each day. But all that came to an abrupt end when God through Jesus Christ
working through the Holy Spirit in the Apostle Peter intervened in the
situation.
The Apostle Peter prompted by the Holy Spirit ignored the lame man’s
plea for alms and gave him healing and total deliverance from being lame and
beggarly to being strong and wealthy. In one day, in an instant, he rose from
the place of being lame, of being carried to beg, from being a beggar to
someone who could stand and walk on his own, leaping and praising God; bidding
eternal goodbye to lameness, beggarliness, lack and poverty occasioned by his
former state. He was now a strong able bodied man who could earn a living; who
could daily move from point A to B to engage in economic activities and who
knows, engage in a marital relationship and have his own family and contribute
meaningfully to society and development. He was no longer dependent on the
mercy of people to carry him to the temple gate to beg; and to give him alms.
He was now physically, spiritually, mentally and economically independent to
live a beautiful life of praising God from Whom all blessings flow. His life
was no longer the daily grind of begging for alms at the beautiful gate. His
life was now beautiful and he did not have to be at the beautiful gate.
Beloved, I have no idea what situation assails you
but what I am definitely sure of is that you can receive strength, divine
strength from God to overcome that situation and be the victor God created you
to be. Please read Ephesians Chapter 3 verses 14 to 21, 6 verse 10, Acts
Chapters 15 verse 32, 18 verse 23, and Isaiah Chapter 50 verses 4 to 5. It was
the absence of strength in the feet and ankle bones of the lame man that kept
him in that situation for years. But the moment God restored His divine
strength in the feet and ankle bones of the lame man, he rose above that
situation. You can also rise above whatever situation assails you if only you
will willingly receive divine strength from God in whatever area of your life
which requires strength.
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