Hearing God Part 3

I apologise for the delay in preparing Part 3 in this series. It was due to circumstances beyond my control.

We began to discuss the topic of DISCERNMENT in Part 2. That will be the focus of this part.

It is imperative to learn to discern which voice we’re hearing at each point - The voice of God, the voice of man (including our own voices) or the voice of the devil?

Ecclesiastes 8:5 links wisdom with discernment. It also shows us that discernment has a timing element as well. I interpret that to mean that you need to know when to act and when to refrain from acting. For instance, Abigail had to speak with Nabal about his foolishness but she waited for the “appropriate time”. She had to speak with David about not taking a rash decision and she had to make haste to meet him. DISCERNMENT is key!

I will say that you can sharpen your ability to discern by spending time with God’s word. There is no shortcut to that. You have to spend time with God and His word to exercise that level of discernment. God’s word is said to be able to penetrate even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

Also, it is imperative to have an active relationship with the Holy Spirit to function in discernment. 1 Corinthians 2:14 tells us that the natural man cannot receive or know the things of the Spirit God because they are spiritually discerned.

The KJV and NIV use “discernment” and “discretion” as synonyms in Proverbs 3: 21.

Paul prayed an insightful prayer in Philippians 1: 9-10 that “your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ”. It is great to love God and others. However, that does not mean that you’ll always know and do what’s best; neither does it guarantee that you’ll be pure and blameless. You need KNOWLEDGE and DEPTH OF INSIGHT to know/do what’s BEST! What’s best is rarely obvious to others at the time they’re confronted with an issue. For instance, when Solomon had to judge between the two harlots in 1 Kings 3: 16-28, there was no witness to corroborate either of the women’s stories. Solomon, in a wonderful display of God’s wisdom, used a mother’s natural compassion for her child to determine the true mother of the child. I have to digress here to wonder what exactly the woman that wanted to steal a child would have gained if the child had been divided. A lesson for me, there, is that a few wise questions usually reveal the wicked intents of some hearts.

Let us pray with David “I am Your servant; give me DISCERNMENT that I may understand Your statutes” (Psalm 119:125)

I have a lot more to say about DISCERNMENT but I’ll like to hear from my readers. What are your thoughts/findings concerning the topic of DISCERNMENT?

Thanks for taking out the time to read and hopefully contribute.

I sincerely pray that Part 4 will not take so long. I hope to begin to look at examples of people who heard from God in the Bible and see what lessons we can learn from them.

Jealousy

God calls Himself JEALOUS! (Exodus 20:5). The jealousy that is healthy is the one that is careful/watchful. As wives, I believe it is healthy to watch our husbands' friendships/relationships. If any of them is crossing boundaries, we should take corrective action - prayers, raising it with him RESPECTFULLY, talking about it with someone he respects etc.

The ugly side of jealousy is envy and I'm sure I don't need to dwell on that.

 

Also, remember that we're told that the virtuous woman watches over the affairs of her household (including her husband's). Just make sure you're not monitoring based on fear.

May the Lord bless and keep our homes, in Jesus' Name. Amen.

My Beautiful Butterfly Colours

When I was a child, I talked like a child I reasoned like a child, I always had to prove my smartness I always had a good reason for whatever it was I did I couldn't suffer "fools" at all, let alone gladly It had to be MY way or the highway They were all too dumb for smart Hephzibah...

 

Like a caterpillar has to hibernate before becoming a butterfly God had to get me into hibernation "Tragedy" struck and forced me to look within I saw, with disgust, how selfish and self-centred I was I couldn't replace "Love" in 1Cor 13 with "Hephzibah"

Too many things to accuse her of

 

Thank God for the period of hibernation

Thank God for METAMORPHOSIS

It's time to forget that caterpillar

It's time to fly like a butterfly

It's time to TRULY radiate the virtues and the perfections of Him That has called me out of darkness Into His marvellous light

 

I can see the ray of light

Morning is coming

Weeping has endured through the night

Joy is coming with the morning

I break forth into singing

Now, I'm spreading my wings

It's time to show forth my beautiful butterfly colours

Lessons from Joseph (1)

Concerning whether or not Joseph should have shared his dream, only God truly knows the answer, in my opinion. I think, though, that if he hadn't, there is the possibility of him living below his maximum potential, remaining his father's favourite son and never really maturing into the man God wanted him to be. I'm one of those that believe that adversity brings out our hidden strengths. Even the coffee you're offering us needs hot water to become attractive; I haven't met anyone who enjoys chewing coffee beans, lol.

However, it is important also to check those we share our God-given visions with. It is important to pray that God opens our eyes to the activities of unfriendly friends who appear to be with you on the surface but are engaging in activities that undermine your progress when you're not looking. I have several stories to share of how God revealed the activities of 'unfriendly friends' to me...

One lesson I picked from Joseph's story is that inspite of his "lowly estate", it was obvious to all that God was with him. He didn't have houses or cars yet Potiphar and the prison warden knew for sure that he was a prosperous man. Selah.

I agree that he had the benefit of the Abrahamic blessing but he was also faithful to God when no one was watching. He realised that sleeping with Potiphar's wife was a sin AGAINST GOD, contrary to the interesting philosophies we hear these days.

I also like the fact that inspite of his position as a Prime Minister, he had only one wife and no woman drama...

I like his work ethic generally, he is definitely one of the great men in the Bible...

DON'T WALK OVER ANYONE'S FEELINGS

I find it a little upsetting when someone that is supposed to be counselling/comforting a person dealing with a challenge adopts the 'You too' approach. Nine times out of ten, their comments are downright INSENSITIVE. I think I understand what they're trying to do but the approach most often than not wounds the already sad person...

Personally, except I'm led to be HARSH with such a person, I usually speak the truth IN LOVE! If I can't find a loving way to tell them the truth, I keep quiet and spend time to pray for loving words to use in communicating a sometimes bitter truth. 

I like the way The Message translation renders Matthew 20:15-21

" Jesus, knowing they were out to get him, moved on. A lot of people followed him, and he healed them all. He also cautioned them to keep it quiet, following guidelines set down by Isaiah: Look well at my handpicked servant; I love him so much, take such delight in him. I’ve placed my Spirit on him; he’ll decree justice to the nations. But he won’t yell, won’t raise his voice; there’ll be no commotion in the streets. He won’t walk over anyone’s feelings, won’t push you into a corner. Before you know it, his justice will triumph; the mere sound of his name will signal hope, even among far-off unbelievers."

He won't walk over anyone's feelings yet His justice would triumph. So, why is it okay for you to walk over the feelings of those that came to you for comfort?Please tell them the truth; just find a loving way to communicate it. 

May the Lord continually shine His light on our path. 

Hephzibah Oyinda, 2015

Growing Wings Episode 13

‘Please ensure you get Olamide to school in time. The school operates a point system; lateness will result in point deduction for Olamide and impact on his final results. Please, it’s very crucial to get him to school in time and make sure his uniform is very clean. I’ll make a list of the chores you need to complete before I get back home’

Wole watched Yeside reeling out instructions to the help like the ‘madam’. He wasn’t too sure if what he felt was pride or resentment. She was in charge. If he didn’t know her well, he would have fallen in love with her just watching her speak with the help. She seemed to be decisive; he only wished she was this assured when dealing with her family members.

His grandparents had kept a distance after his marriage. They grudgingly showed up at his wedding and quickly kept a distance once Yeside’s family members began to bare their fangs. Aunty Sholape, his aunt in Lagos, had tried to blend with his in-laws but after a few disastrous attempts, she also kept a distance. Justice Anjola thoroughly disgraced Aunty Sholape at the last function she came for. They had served everyone else on her table and somehow managed to skip her. When she complained to Justice Anjola, her response and demeanor thoroughly embarrassed Aunty Sholape.

‘Please help me find something for this woman’, Justice Anjola bellowed to one of the service boys.

At least, that was what Aunty Sholape told him about four months later when he paid her a visit. She had refused to pick his calls before then and after that, she avoided him. None of his family members wanted anything to do with him since he chose to rub shoulders with the Agunbiades. They essentially washed their hands off him. As much as he tried to brush it off, it hurt him deeply. He laid the blame for that where it rightly belonged – with Yeside and her family members. He made a mental note to visit Aunty Sholape pretty soon.

Wole was amused at how Yeside expected the help to complete so many tasks within the 8 hour period they would be away – clean the house, wash and iron clothes, get Olamide to school, make food, get to the market etc. Yeside couldn’t accomplish those tasks herself in 24 hours. She was definitely going to make his job easier. He would just wait for the right time to strike.

*************************************************************************************

Yeside felt Wole watching her intently. Only God knows what was going through his mind. He almost had a smile while she gave Martha instructions. He looked handsome, yet so unreachable. She should have felt relieved as Martha resumed but she had a nagging feeling that all was not well. She couldn’t place it so she kept going over her ‘To-do’ list. Something was amiss and she didn’t know it.

‘Are you okay, darling?’ Yeside asked Wole.

‘Do I look like I’m not?’ Wole barked back at her

He quickly caught himself and muttered a muffled apology. He couldn’t let her suspect that he was up to something.

Yeside waved goodbye and headed off to work.

Wole decided to wait a bit before going to work; he needed to study how Martha worked so he would plan his move. Thankfully, his boss was on a business trip and he had actually been suspended for two weeks as a result of the issue with the Igbaje residents. His boss told him that the suspension was the best he could negotiate for him, considering his past track record. If he was better connected, he would have got a transfer instead of the suspension. His boss suggested that he should speak with his in-laws to see if they knew anyone that could mediate for him. Wole thanked his boss and promised to check if there was anyone that could speak for him. He had no intention of asking for help from any of them; hell would have to freeze over before he would ask for help from any of the Agunbiades. If he tried it, he would keep paying for it for the rest of his life.

Yeside couldn’t stop talking about how her opportunity with Barrister Ikedia was a good thing for her as a ‘High Flyer’. Why could she not just keep quiet and let him eat in peace. He had to smile and appear to be happy for her. He learnt that Justice Anjola was already in the picture, as usual. They spent the weekend going over similar case files. He wondered what they would have done if he told them about his suspension. He could imagine their response – fake ‘It is well’ from Yeside and false attempts to help by Justice Anjola. He was so sure they would be so happy that their evil plans were succeeding. He was tempted to tell them just to dampen their moods but no, he won’t be stupid enough to deliver himself to his frenemies...

Please leave comments with suggestions on how you believe the story should unfold. Please credit ‘The Women Stories’ if you choose to share. Thank you.

WHERE ARE THE FAITHFUL MEN?

I saw a post recently where a lady had essentially laid out the qualities she expected from the man asking for her hand in marriage. Truly, she didn't ask for a Ferrari or Brazillian weaves etc. She asked him what he was bringing to the table. She asked if he was willing to strive for excellence. She asked him if he was willing to be the man that God made him to be.

The comments some young men made on the post made me want to put on sackcloth and mourn. They claimed she would grow old while waiting for the 'perfect' man.

Too many men want a 'Proverbs 31' wife but are unwilling to pay the price. One comment I love so much told the guys that were unwilling to pay the price to please stick with the 'cheap' women that their character can afford but quit complaining when their wives turn them to ATM machines or are found sleeping around with all their friends.

I know there are exceptions here and there. I also know that someone is thinking 'What about the girls that ignore 'faithful men'?' Please put up a post about that and if it is balanced, I'll be glad to share it. This post is about asking men to be the faithful men God desires them to be.

 "Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier." (2 Timothy 2:1-4).

 We need more faithful men who will teach others the pure and unadulterated gospel. We need more faithful men who will confront the evils of our day. We need more faithful men who through faith will subdue kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtain promises, stop the mouths of lions, quench the violence of fire, escape the edge of the sword, out of weakness be made strong, wax valiant in fight, turn to flight the armies of the aliens. (Hebrews 11:33-34). I'm tired of reading about philandering and wife-battering men, who are to be treated as babies by their wives because of their 'fragile egos'. I celebrate the men that are rising up as pillars of the families and the society at large. May the Lord continue to strengthen and uphold you all.

I also celebrate the women who have tried to hold it together, even while the men were unfaithful.

Brothers, it's time to stop making excuses for the flesh. The proper treatment for the flesh is not pampering/excusing it away. As a believer, the onus is on you to MORTIFY the deeds of the flesh. That's right, KILL IT! Put your body under.

"And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway." (1 Corinthians 9:25-27).

Enjoy today's service and have a pleasurable rest of the day.

Lessons from Jonah

I was actually ruminating over the story of Jonah recently and a few points stood out to me.

 

The first was the part of the mariners. Some of the storms we're dealing with are because of who we're travelling/associating with. The storm ceased for them when they parted ways with Jonah - some relationships have to be severed (or redefined) for some storms to cease.

 

Secondly, Jonah was still in the belly of the fish when he made the powerful proclamations/prophecies we find in Jonah 2. It was after he made those proclamations that the fish vomitted him.

 

Thirdly, even in our disobedience, God is merciful. God got a fish to swallow Jonah for 3 days, yet he came out unhurt. He was shielded from the harshness of the marine environment and from drowning, even while he was disobedient. He came to a place of repentance while in the belly of the fish.

 

Finally, we learn that we still have hidden heart issues that only come to the fore when we're faced with adverse issues. Jonah's lack of total trust in God came to the fore when he was sent to Nineveh. His self-righteousness was revealed when God showed mercy on Nineveh.

 

My prayer for you and I today is that the Lord reveals all our hidden shortcomings as we journey in life.

Idolizing Ministers

I made this comment on a post about idolizing ministers of God...

I’m not sure there is too much the members can do to help spiritual leaders to be level-headed. It’ll be great not to idolise leaders but I’m not sure it’ll help if the leader is prone to pride anyway.

I think it’s up to the leaders themselves to find a board or a group of friends or some people that they choose to be accountable to…it could even be their spouses…people that have nothing to gain from them and are bold enough to tell them the truth, no matter what!

The consequences of idolisation are graver for the leaders than for the followers…

I don’t believe followers that submit to leadership/authority are doing wrong…Hebrews 13:17 says ‘Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.’

In Acts 20:28, Paul was addressing the elders of the church in Ephesus. He told them, ‘KEEP WATCH OVER YOURSELVES and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. [traditionally bishops] Be shepherds of the church of God, [the Lord] which He bought with his own blood.

God will not share His glory with any man/woman, minister or lay man…Jesus shed His blood for the church; He is not joking…

I am terrified (for want of a better word) when I think of Acts 12: 21-24

‘On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man.” Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died. But the word of God continued to increase and spread.’

People tend to idolize their leaders perhaps because of their natural tendencies to do that but also because the leaders encourage them to do so. The angel of God struck Herod down because he did not give praise to God. It was Herod that gave the speech that excited the people but he did not realise that it was God that deserved the praise…I believe a lot of leaders have not been struck down only because of the Lord’s mercy…

The most ineffective leaders are those that exercise positional authority…The most effective leaders are those that understand that leadership is not for personal gain but an opportunity given by God to build up His people…the members have been washed by the blood of the Lamb…they are worth the blood of Jesus….

I know I’ve written an epistle on this…I can’t help it…It’s hurtful to see God’s people being mishandled despite how precious they are to the Lord…I have heard too many hurtful stories that make me ask that the Lord should come quickly…Shalom…

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT ADULTERY?

The first time adultery appears in the Bible is as part of the Ten Commandments – THOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY…No story about how one’s spouse or terrible living conditions or a poor job or whatever led one to do it. Adultery is a violation of the law; that’s it.

The sentence for adultery in the Old Testament was DEATH! No atonement or whatever…Leviticus 20:10

For those that justify adultery because a ‘strange woman’ made him do it, you may want to check out Proverbs 6: 20-35.

Adultery was one of the sins for which God promised to visit Israel and Judah in Jeremiah 5 (You can be sure He didn’t visit them to bless them then)

For those who claim that grace covers them therefore they can continue in sin, please read Jeremiah 7: 9-16, Jeremiah 23: 9-15 and Jeremiah 29: 21-23.

For the women involved in adultery, you should read Ezekiel 16.

For those that will not take instructions from the Old Testament because Jesus abolished it, you can read what Jesus had to say about adultery in Matthew 5:27-30

Having said that, Jesus showed mercy towards the woman caught in the act of adultery. That is not an endorsement of adultery because He told her ‘GO AND SIN NO MORE’. With that statement, he properly identified as a sin but He showed her MERCY and asked her to STOP what she was doing. Those that are still engaging in the act while claiming ‘Grace’, YOU ARE IN ERROR. Those that have found other names to glamorize the sin of adultery – affair, indiscretion, WELL DONE! By God’s grace, I will still put up a post to address this story properly.

O Hephzibah that says that a man should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? ANSWER NOW, lol. (Romans 2:22). I believe this was Jesus’ point in Romans 8. It was not a justification of adultery as some may see it.

Adultery is a sign of a lack of love. Love is a debt that we owe all men (Romans 13: 8-10)

Adultery is a work of the flesh (Galatians 6:19) and we are told that those that do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God (Galatians 6: 21)

As said there earlier, God shows mercy to the repentant adulterer but He does not approve of adultery (James 2: 8-13)

One of the attributes of false prophets and teachers is that their eyes are full of adultery (2 Peter 2:14)

Jesus promised those that commit adultery with Jezebel that he will cast them into a great tribulation except they repent of their deeds (Revelations 3: 22).

With all that I have before me as evidence from the Bible, I cannot BUT detest adultery. It is first and foremost a sin against God. Then, it is wickedness against one’s spouse. I have read stories that subtly try to justify adultery by showing the shortcomings of the spouse that was cheated on. While I do not encourage sloppiness from anyone, male or female, adultery can NEVER be the solution. A believer has a lot at stake if he/she gives in to the temptation to cheat. It’s up to each of us to decide whether we will give in to the flesh (and commit adultery) OR we will hold on to God’s Word and trust Him to beautify our marriages.

I pray that each one of us will choose, when presented with the opportunity to commit adultery , o remember that “Marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled : but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.” Hebrews 13: 4

 

There is no reason good enough God to justify adultery.

 

For those that have fallen into the sin of adultery, the first step is repentance. You need to say like the prodigal son planned to say “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee”. Leave the ‘far country’ you’re in (leave whoever it is you’re committing adultery with) and head home! Someone is right there waiting for you…It’s time to return home.

 

Let us pray

Dear Father, I thank You for Your lost children that have repented of the sin of adultery. Dear Lord, they are here to ask for forgiveness of their sin(s). You said that if we confess our sins, You are faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. I pray for the people that they have hurt by their actions. Lord, please help them forgive and work towards reconciliation and restoration. Lord, please help them close every door that opened and exposed them to adultery. Lord, please repair every hedge that has been broken as a result of these sins. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen

Random Musings

Noah and his family were in the ark for 375 days (or thereabout). What were they doing? Did they have quarrels? How did they survive ‘confinement’ for so long without having a bad attitude? (Read Genesis 6-7)

Laban learned BY EXPERIENCE that God blessed him because of Jacob’s sake (Genesis 30:27)

God speaks through dreams (Genesis 31: 11, 24)

Jacob left his father’s house with nothing but the blessings of Abraham and came back FULL! (Genesis 31)

Jacob’s wives were the ones that (mis)ruled his household; he spent way too much time serving Laban to the detriment of family life. Something to think more about... (Genesis 29-33)

Jesus was on his way to raise the dead when he met the woman with the issue of blood. Yet He gave her enough time to tell her testimony. (Matthew 9: 18-26)

Deborah had a palm tree called ‘The Palm Tree of Deborah’ where the children of Israel came up to her for judgement (Judges 4:5)

 

Hearing God Part 2

We learnt in Part 1 that there are three voices one can hear from - The voice of God, the voice of man and the voice of the devil.

One of the comments on the Part 1 post rightly pointed out the importance of discernment in this "Hearing God" business.

Actually, after eating the forbidden fruit (which some have erroneously thought to be an apple or sex, I'm still perplexed about how they came to such a conclusion), Adam and Eve still recognized God's voice (Genesis 3:8-10).

The woman listened to the serpent (the voice of the devil) whereas the man listened to the voice of his wife (the voice of man). In this instance, the voice of man was echoing the voice of the devil. In my opinion, the key issue that brings confusion in this "Hearing God" business is the voice of man. The voice of God is clear, God will not go against His word. The voice of the devil is equally clear, he will ALWAYS go against God's word.

It is this voice of man that sometimes goes with God and sometimes goes with the devil that creates confusion. A classic case happened with Simon (Peter) and Jesus in Matthew 16. In verses 16-17, Simon revealed Christ as the Messiah and Jesus blessed him as a result of that revelation. In verses 21-23, Jesus was telling them what was to come and there was Simon rebuking Jesus, telling Him to 'stop that negative confession' (Ouch!). Jesus rebuked Simon and recognized Satan talking through Simon.

I'm sure someone watching Simon and Jesus would have wondered how Jesus could in one breath bless Simon for revealing Him as the Messiah and in another rebuke him even to the point of calling him Satan and other "unprintable names" just because the dude was telling Him not to make "negative confessions".

Jesus exercised discernment! Of course, before you can discern anyone's voice, you need to have constant fellowship with such a person. I remember at least one occasion where I hadn't seen my friend but I recognized her BY HER VOICE before she met me at the top of the stairs. I knew her voice because we were in constant fellowship. You will only be able to discern God's voice only when you constantly fellowship with Him through His word and by His Spirit.

I've heard/read some people saying that they don't need to ask the Holy Spirit what time to leave the house when going for a 10am appointment while trying to highlight the importance of common sense. I see where they are coming from and I partially agree. What I've learnt is that when the Holy Spirit has become your intimate friend, you cannot but ask. You won't be relating to Him as a boss from whom you're seeking permission, you'll be relating to Him as a friend from whom you're seeking an opinion.

We'll continue with the discussion on Discernment in Part 3.

Have a lovely and fruitful day.

Hearing God Part 1

Many times, when we're faced with difficult/challenging situations, we are advised to hear what God is saying. Someone rightly said that anyone that can teach others how to hear God will change the world. I'll like to add that God is not mysterious.

I'll be putting up these posts as often as I possibly can.

The first instance of God talking to man (human beings) is found in Genesis 1:28-30. The "man" He spoke to at the time only knew God's voice so there was no confusion as to Who was talking to them.

Next, we read about God commanding man not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:16-17)

 

We see God and Adam working together in naming the animals - God brought them, Adam named them (Genesis 2:9-10). This shows us the second voice many hear. It is the voice of man. What the voice of man will tell you depends on who that person is working with. Adam named all the animals and God did not contest the names Adam gave. "and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof." (Genesis 2:19b).

When it came to finding a wife for Adam, God brought him the woman. Interestingly, Adam was not looking for a wife (he didn't have enough sense to know he needed one). I'll digress a little to talk about our need for companionship. It's great to be focused on God. However, God Himself realises that it is not good for "man" to be alone. We need others; it's part of God's original design.

We hear "the voice of man" again in Genesis 2:23-24. Note that it was Adam, not God, that talked about the "leaving and cleaving" business. Also note that God did not express a contrary opinion.

In Genesis 3:1, we find another voice - the voice of the serpent. He challenged the very word God had spoken to "man".

Annoyingly, the first recorded speech made by the woman was with the serpent and it contained an untruth. I know many have used this against women and have used that as their reason why women should not speak. My question to such people is this - "If she isn't supposed to speak, why was she given a voice?" And I'll like to encourage my sisters to use their voices the way God intended.

If you don't know what you're supposed to use your voice for, let me spell it out again from Genesis 1:28. Use your voices for things that make you fruitful, things that make you multiply, things that cause you to replenish the earth, things that make you subdue the earth and things that make you exercise dominion over the animals in the earth. Note that God has not given you a voice to subdue or dominate other human beings. Please stop "wasting" your voice, reasoning with the devil or propagating his message.

The devil was obviously lying. Firstly, he called God a liar when he told the woman that eating the fruit of the tree would not result in the consequences that God said it would. Any voice telling you to go against what God has said in His word is the voice of the devil. Some will even back it up with "Wisdom is profitable to direct" or similar scriptures. Be guided, resist such voices.

At some point, the devil stopped talking; he had sowed enough poison. The fact that the woman listened to the serpent was not the sin. It was the action she took that led to the sin. The choice was ultimately hers to make - Listen to God and leave the tree alone or listen to the devil and eat? We know what her choice was. Some have speculated that it only became a sin when Adam ate the fruit. Uhmmm. Please share your views concerning that.

Any counsel that will lead you to the point of hiding from God cannot be from God.

Please share your views RESPECTFULLY.