25/02/2025
"I had just one left—just one. And even this one I had left took so much effort and sweat in prayers, fasting for countless days, thorough reading and meditation on the Word of God, and so much waiting upon the Lord.
After all this effort I invested in getting this one I have left, you still demand for it to be taken away for yourself. With all due respect, sir, I don't think I can give this away—not now, not ever."
"To those of you who have left one for God, I really did not use to understand you at all.
And to those of you who are presently in the shoes I used to be in, I used to understand you.
Out of nowhere, a man of God would just say, 'When I was rising, the Lord told me to go and empty my account of 3 million naira, and I did.' I used to think, Why would you do that? Isn't that foolishness? Yet, I have been the one asking myself such a foolish question over and over again after hearing these testimonies.
I always believed that those who had given their all were the ones acting foolishly. Why should I empty my account of 5 million naira just because of an instruction or a voice? I used to ask myself.
And after they gave their testimonies, they would say, 'Then God came through for us, and you know, this and that happened, that and this happened—all of that happened to us.'"
Although all these testimonies about following God’s instructions and the blessings that followed were clear and well-confirmed, even after hearing them, I was neither compelled nor persuaded to go and empty my account—giving away the only thing my family and I depended on—all in the name of the work of God, the development of the Kingdom, and its advancement. Those themes backing up the idea of giving everything could never cajole me.
At some point, some would even say, “Brethren, God told us to empty our account—not just our account, but everything we had, loved, and cherished. And guess what? We did it. We gave it all and had nothing left for our sustenance.”
The moment I started listening to messages like this, I would think, Why are human beings like this? Excluding myself, of course, because my own type of human being would never go to the extent of giving everything away without keeping anything for survival. How then would I continue to live my life after giving away the one thing that is my everything—the very thing I depend on?
I would say to myself, Come on, my amiable testifier, your testimonies are not compelling, jare. Man’s gotta survive.
It just didn’t seem reasonable to submit everything I had, sell all my possessions, and then what? Open my mouth to the atmosphere and expect it to feed me? What would I sustain myself and my family with after giving away my everything? Besides, my wife would never even agree with such an idea, jare. “Who does that?” she would ask me.
So, only you guys know what you have seen and encountered that makes you live so radically for the same God we are all serving together.
**"At the side, God is not so great as to tell a servant to empty all that he or she has just for Him. God is very considerate and has great wisdom. Even His Word says, 'I know the thoughts I have toward you, thoughts of good and not of evil, to give you an expected end.' So where do you people even get your instructions from—to forsake all you have?
After I pay my tithe and settle my own financial responsibilities, what then is the case for forsaking everything? And for what exactly? Tell me. No one can preach that to me.
I believe that some or most of us reading this right now will agree with me that God is not a wicked God who would ask for everything I possess. What does He even need my everything for? All He asks from me is a tenth of all I have.
This was how I had been living my life until I broke free from the foolishness that had blinded my understanding from seeing God’s true intent behind His demands.
All this while, I held on to the belief that God would never request or demand everything I depend on. But I began to notice some things that were very clear in my life.
Firstly, I realized that there was no multiplication. All I had and depended on was that one thing I held onto so tightly, refusing to give it away. My financial status and my wife’s financial status remained the same for many years—we were just stagnant in that area.
Secondly, I noticed that my coast did not enlarge. Yet, my wife and I prayed for enlargement all our days. But it never happened. I even claimed scriptural references that spoke about enlargement and prayed for God to supply all my needs according to His riches in glory. But none of those prayers were answered. Instead, day by day, our financial needs expanded, but our financial status remained the same. I could not understand what was happening.
At the same time, I noticed that there was no fruitfulness. There was nothing to account for, nothing to depend on. Many other things also happened to me during those years of misunderstanding.
Eventually, when I could no longer bear it, I cried out and explained myself to a man of God. Then he asked me certain questions.
I told him all my reasons for not being able to give from the little I had because that was all my family had to survive.
Then the man of God told me, 'That is where you missed it. God was only looking for a man to multiply, and He found you. Yet, you weren’t ready to give one for multiple.'"
**"Through this man of God, I discovered early that I had been a terrible human being, living a terrible life with a terrible understanding of what the Scriptures actually said. I was living my life upside down—all of which proved that I lacked the fear of God.
Not only that, but after this early discovery, I didn’t just see myself as a terrible sinner—I saw myself as the worst kind of Christian. Because if you had told me that I was not walking in the light of God’s understanding, I would have proven you wrong to the core.
The man of God made me realize that it is a terrible thing to live your life upside down. He truly taught me the truth I had been missing.
But the good news is that I did not discover this too late. Through this man of God, I realized how lost I was—early enough—before it was too late for me and my family.
He opened my eyes to the story of a man called Abraham, who had waited upon the Lord far longer than I could ever say I had waited. He told me that Abraham had waited so long that, at one point, he mistook an offer for the actual promise of God.
But in due time, the promised child was born to Abraham and Sarah. This child was their only joy, their only hope, and the only heir they had—the very thing they depended on.
**"Shortly after, as the child grew up, God demanded him as a sacrifice. And Abraham obeyed God—he was ready to sacrifice Isaac, the only child they had, for God. But after everything, the child was not killed; instead, a provision was made as a substitute for the sacrifice. This was how God proved how much Abraham feared Him.
The angel that called out to Abraham that day when he went to sacrifice Isaac said, 'Now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, from me.'
After this, God called unto Abraham again through His angel, saying, 'By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son…' Then the angel continued, 'That in blessing, I will bless thee, and in multiplying, I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is upon the seashore. And thy seed shall possess the gates of his enemies. And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed because thou hast obeyed my voice.'
Now, the man of God told me that there are many lessons to learn from this short scenario between Abraham and God, and one of them is fruitfulness and multiplication.
He said to me, 'If God has demanded one from you, it is because He wants to multiply you, not because He wants to leave you stranded by taking it away.'
Only those who release the one they have will be multiplied, but those who refuse to release what they have will never experience multiplication.
Also, that one you hold onto so tightly, the one you call your everything, will never allow you to multiply. Instead, forsake it for the Lord, revive yourself, and multiply in the presence of God.
God is looking for a man who can release one in exchange for more.
**"To those who find it difficult to sow into the work of God and to those who struggle to give to God by giving to His people, remember this: As much as you have done it for one of His people, you have done it for Him.
Repent and correct your ways so that you may command the blessings and multiplication of God in your life.
And to those who find it difficult to forsake this world for the Lord, ask for mercy and forsake this one world for the Lord so that you can multiply, and you shall be called blessed.
**God is only looking for a man He will multiply**.
Stay blessed.
