9904 Woodstream Court, Lanham MD 20706

Phone: +1 (240) 350-6426

http://www.joyfullivingministries.org
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------DAILY NUGGETS FOR JOYFUL LIVING
Saturday, January 03, 2015
But He knows the way that I take; When He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold. Job 23:10 KJV
NOT YET
One day a very beautiful teacup was narrating the story of his creation: My life started as red clay. My maker took me, rolled me, and
patted me over and over until I yelled out, let me alone,' but he only smiled and said, 'Not yet'. Then he placed me on a spinning wheel, and
suddenly I was spun around and around. Stop it! I'm getting dizzy!' I screamed out. But he only nodded and said, 'Not yet.' Then he put me in the
oven. I never felt such heat. I wondered why he wanted to burn me, and so I yelled and knocked at the oven door. He shook his head and said,
'Not yet.' Finally the door opened. He took me out and put me on the shelf, and I began to cool off. There, that's better,' I said. And he
brushed and painted me all over. The fumes were horrible. I thought I would gag. 'Stop it, stop it!' I cried. He only nodded, 'Not yet.' Then
suddenly, he put me back into the oven and doubled the heat intensity. I knew I would suffocate. I begged, I pleaded, I screamed, and I cried.
All the time, he was nodding his head and saying, 'Not yet.' Then I knew there wasn't any hope for me and I was never going to make it. I was
ready to give up. But then, the oven door opened. He took me out and placed me on the shelf. One hour later he handed me a mirror and said,
'Look at you!' And I did. I said, 'That's not me; that couldn't be me. It's beautiful. I'm beautiful.' I want you to remember that I know it hurt to
be rolled and patted, but if I had left you, you'd have dried up. I know it made you dizzy to spin around on the wheel, but if I had stopped, you
would have crumbled. I know it hurt while in the oven, but if I hadn't put you there, you would have cracked. I know the fumes were bad when I
brushed and painted you all over, but if I hadn't done that, you never would have hardened. You would not have had any color in your life, and if I
hadn't put you back in that second oven, you wouldn't survive for long because the hardness would not have held. Now you are a finished product.
You are what I had in mind when I first began my work on you. Friend, whatever trial it might be, God is working something out for your good.
God is a Master architect. Before you were designed in your mothers womb, He knew how you would look, who you would be, and went
ahead to make a way that will guide you into the person you now portray. You know what, He could have made you to be born in Birmingham Palace,
England, but He chose a different place for you. Or, you could have been born at Sixteen Hundred, Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC, USA
as one of the angels suggested, but God said, Not there. Eventually, you were born to your family, exactly where you are right now. Beloved,
God makes no mistakes. He understands your make-up and knows exactly how you feel at all times. And if you feel incomplete today, thats
probably because He has not finished with you yet. He knows that you are His work in progress. Are there things still lacking in your life, and you
sometimes feel frustrated? Be patient and go through your own Refiners furnace and you will be amazed at who you will become tomorrow as a
finished product. Every beautiful ornament admired by man today goes through the refiners process. The misery of pain in the furnace justifies
the magnet of gains you will experience afterwards. Job 23:10 speaks volumes on this: But He knows the way that I take; when He has tried me,
I shall come forth as gold. God is not ignorant of what you are going through at the moment. A little closeness to Him in 2015 will reveal to you
that He might be saying Not Yet on your situation, since He may be working to bring out the best that you can be in beauty tomorrow. He wants
your end to be His dream realized. Whatever you are experiencing this very moment will surely work out for your good tomorrow. When you begin
to cry that your time of trials should be shortened, if you listen attentively to Him, He will be saying saying, Not yet. You know that even Jesus
cried, Father, if it is possible, please let this cup pass away from me. I could hear God in my spirit saying to His only begotten Son, Not yet.
Today, Jesus is the Lord of ALL. When Paul had a thorn in the flesh and cried to Him in prayers, three times God told him, NOT YET, for My
Grace is sufficient for you. Very close to his exit, Paul declared to Timothy, I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept
the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day:
Beloved, God is building your testimony to redeem as many as will come across your story. If you are giving up now, my advice to you is
to hold on; press on for the mark of your Christian faith and be patient until the reward comes at the end. God might be telling you: NOT YET.
That means your time of honor is in front of you. Your reward is being prepared for you tomorrow. God is telling you that there is a package of
blessings coming your way with your name on it. It is filled up with goodness and mercy for you. It will give you a breakthrough that will baffle
humanity in 2015. It comes with healing on its wings for you. It comes overflowing with prosperity and every form of earthly success. It has a
shield of Divine protection. The stamp on it is Colossians 2:10, And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.
Beloved, anytime things dont turn out the way you so expect, get down on your knees and pray instead of asking Him, why me, or why is this my
lot. You will hear Him say to you, NOT YET, and that is prove that your testimony is at the corner. And like the cup in our story, your lifes
beauty will be unparallel to any that this generation has ever known. Joyful Living will become your daily experience from this day forward. Amen?
Prayer Point: O Lord, I submit myself to your work in me. In the furnace where I will be molded and refined recreate me. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen!

Pastors Chris & Julie Akpama

Dont forget your COVENANT with God every day. Call the pastor from 6:30 pm till 9:30 pm @ (240) 350-6426 for encouragement and for
covenant prayers. Call expecting! Call believing!! Your miracle is possible with prayers!!! Amen? Acts 12:5-9

2015, A YEAR OF DIVINE EXCHANGE Isaiah 61:2-3