GRACE FOR PROSPERITY AND SECURITY DEMANDS TEAMWORK

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi 

Num 32:13-19 NKJV “So the Lord's anger was aroused against Israel, and He made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation that had done evil in the sight of the Lord was gone.  And look! You have risen in your fathers' place, a brood of sinful men, to increase still more the fierce anger of the Lord against Israel. For if you turn away from following Him, He will once again leave them in the wilderness, and you will destroy all these people."  Then they came near to him and said: "We will build sheepfolds here for our livestock, and cities for our little ones, but we ourselves will be armed, ready to go before the children of Israel until we have brought them to their place; and our little ones will dwell in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land.  We will not return to our homes until every one of the children of Israel has received his inheritance.”

          The tribe of Gad and Reuben were very successful in the business of animal husbandry more than any of the tribes in Israel and as such they were more concerned about their security and investments than in the pursuit of the common goal of the prosperity and security of the twelve tribes . They were pessimists and a source of discouragement to others. It was a habit leant from their parents. Pessimism is transferable from parents to children and it is the reason behind stagnation among some of God’s people. The pessimist is always quick to see a reason for failure especially in team operations.

     Moses reiterated the importance of teamwork in our collective and individual progress. Your success is incomplete with so many poor around you . The tribe of Reuben and Gad thought they could be safe in the exclusion of the prosperity and security of their brethren but were proven wrong through Moses’ rebuke. Your prosperity has an adverse effect on your neighbours , in this case the noise from the animals , stench from the manure  are bound to offend the neighbours , you may not know it but the blaring of car horns and sirens ,effluent from your compound, destruction  and obstruction of path ways by cars , noise and air pollution by power generating sets and arbitrary price hike are some of the negative effects of our prosperity on our neighbours.Your prosperity is the reason for someone's poverty. It is not the will of God that one part of society prospers at the expense of the prosperity and security of the majority . It is is one of the reasons for insecurity among God’s people. We are never safe as long as there are poor neighbours around us . Therefore , we should do all that is within our power to ensure our family and neighbours have the basics of life .

    Teamwork is the essence of the Christian fellowship (Hebrews 10:24-25) we go through life’s struggles together and emerge victorious together. The tribes of Gad and Reuben after Moses’ rebuke agreed to cross the Jordan to fight with the others as a team .In our prayers we fight the fight of faith for others too because the essence of teamwork is everyone working together until everybody receives their share. In our families we are expected to look out for each other ;giving special care to the weak in faith until everybody receives his or her portion. A lone star cannot make a bright night sky . We are stronger together and everyone should be made to know that their contribution matters and nobody can win in life by working against the team .Life is like a boat and we row in the same direction to get to our collective destiny. You are not a winner until everybody wins.

      As   you receive Jesus Christ as lord and savior and read this now  , receive grace for a victorious team spirit .

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