Submitting to One Another

admin May 7, 2020 1384 0

Eph 5:21, "Submit to one
another out of reverence
for Christ"
This above stated scripture
should never be taken lightly,
if the church must be healthy
in times like this...
Submission to one another
is a noble calling.
Submission doesn't make you
lesser person to the one
you're submitted to, but if you
think so, it means you're still
full of "self".
Submission to one another is
what makes the church
function in unity.
Submission to one another
makes us whole.
We know in part and prophesy
in part, but if we submit to
one another we will have
spiritual cooperation and
the church will indeed be
glorious.
Yes, some of us are leaders...
but true leaders also submit
to their followers, that's how
they lead well.
Some of us mentor others,
but mentorship is not
one-sided, you must give
your mentee chance to relate
with you and express himself,
you may have one or two things
to learn.
Do not be among those that
derive joy in lording over
others and placing
themselves above others all
in the name of "I am labouring
over you".
Yes the holy spirit is our
teacher but it is an error to
think you have nothing to
learn from another brethren,
just because you feel you
are always in a position to
teach.
Let me burst your bubble,
you do not have monopoly of
the Holy spirit.
The Lord gives more grace
to the humble and if you are
not submitting to one another,
you are far from humility and
you may soon find yourself
walking in the spirit of error.
When you are unteachable,
it is not a sign that you
are submitted ONLY to the
Holy Ghost, it's rather a sign
that you are full of yourself
and in need of help.
Don't use "I learn only from
the Lord" to cover
your unteachability, the
Lord can teach you through
that brethren whom He
once taught through you.
If you realise that it is all
about Christ, you will NOT
allow knowledge to puff
you up!
What do you have that you
didn't receive?
No one is greater than his
brethren. Though you appear
to have great knowledge
or because you have
been teaching for a long
time now, or because you
now have plenty followers
on Facebook and your
WhatsApp group..
The truth is that you still do
not have all the knowledge
there is. Submitting to one
another is how the Lord helps
His church to grow in
knowledge.
The nose cannot do the job
of the eyes, just as the
hand cannot do the job of
the heart.
We are one body in Christ
and if we do not submit to
one another, how can we
be whole?
How can the body function
well if the nose thinks it
doesn't need the hand, who
will help it put on the nose
mask in this covid 19 season?
Friends we need one another,
let's come down from our
high horses and realize
that God can use others to
teach us, even as He uses
us to teach others.
There are some avoidable
mistakes you've made just
because you refused to learn
from another brethren, all in
the name of "holy ghost is
my only teacher".
Think about it saints...
Submission to one another
is wholeness and power...
It is the way of the spirit.
From the above scripture,
you can see that submitting
to one another is a way to
show your reverence to the
Christ you claim to have
submitted to.
Wisdom is a great virtue.
#Jesusfocus

CRITICISM CAN BE A
LEARNING EXPERIENCE
I have come to discover
from practical experience
that criticism can be an
effective learning experience. Though no one actually
loves criticism but the fact
remains that you may need
it for you to have lasting
success in life, ministry,
career, business and whatever
you are involved in.
Successful people in this
world are not people who
avoid mistakes or errors.
They are the ones who learn
from them.
And we all make mistakes.
I learned from diligent study
that Henry Ford, in inventing
the automobile, made one
big mistake the first time around...he left out the
reverse gear.
We all have some problems
in responding to criticism.
Criticism tends to stir up
any number of strong
emotional feelings in us, from
guilt and resentment to
outright anger.
However there are three
ways of handling criticism.
It is very important for you
to know which one you fall
into.
The first reaction is FIGHT.
You can decide to say,
" I don't want to hear about it."
In doing this, you deny the criticism; you turn it down and
fight it.
If someone criticizes you,
your response may be,
"You are out of your mind"
or "Bros/Sis, keep your opinions
to yourself."
In this case, you are fighting
the criticism and may even
end up fighting the critic.
The second way of reacting
to criticism is FLIGHT.
When you are using the
flight approach, you are
saying, "Abeg, don't criticize
me, because I can't face it;
I can't discuss it."
You may even think, "How can
I be so stupid?" or
"I never do anything right."
In this case, you might start
crying or become overwhelmed
by it. You may even decide not
to do anything tangible again
so as to avoid being criticized.
Interestingly flight seems to
be the opposite of fight: fight
is aggressive while flight is
timid or passive.
But actually they have more
in common than you and I
might realize.
In both reactions, you deny
the criticism.
These two reactions are
both refusals to examine the
truth.
One is through tears while
one is through aggression.
The third reaction is
EVALUATE.
This happens where we
have trained ourselves to
be objective and
openminded.
Though evaluation is easier
said than done.
But it is necessary to get
the best out of the criticism.
Some steps to evaluate
criticism are:
1. Ask yourself, "What can I
learn from this person?"
There is something to be learned
if you look deeply into what
has been said.
2. Agree with part of the
criticism.
If you do that, here is what
you will accomplish.
You will be letting the person
know that he or she has
been heard.
It has a way of killing their
initial aggression most times.
It deflates their tyres.
3. Be sure you understand
the criticism.
Take the time to
understand whether it is
a constructive criticism or
unfair criticism that is born
out of envy, mischief
or wickedness.
4.Give yourself time to digest
the criticism before responding.
5. Analyze and get the facts.
Good decision makers analyze
the facts first.
6. Adjust your behaviour if there
is need for you to.
Don't hesitate to make
necessary adjustments.
It is not every criticism that
should be seen as an attack
on your person.
Sometimes, the evidence of
your humility is shown in the
way you handle criticism.