By Ighomuaye Lucky. O
The general overseer and founder of God’s Greater Grace General Assembly (GGGGA) Int’l Incorporated, Benin, Rev Sunny Akenbor has challenged believers in Christ not to accept all words spoken against them hook line and sinker but to query those to be queried and accept those to be accepted because words are powerful.
He said this while speaking on the topic:”My word must prevail” during the Sunday church service in Benin City, the Edo State capital.
Rev. Akenbor said negative words spoken if not challenged could prevail adding that, that is the reason it should be checked immediately instead of absorbing them out of shame or for the fear of what people might say.
Akenbor gave an instance where Joshua prophesied against Jericho in Joshua 6:26 saying that whoever will lay the foundation, will do so with his first son and complete same with his last son and it came through in 1 Kings 16: 34 because nobody objected to the word.
“In Ahab’s time, Hiel of Bethel rebuilt Jericho. He laid its foundations at the cost of his firstborn son Abiram, and he set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, in accordance with the word of the Lord spoken by Joshua son of Nun”, 1 Kings 16:34.
He said also that Reuben, the first son of Jacob committed a heinous crime by sleeping with his father’s concubine, Bilhah and he was cursed by him (Genesis 49:1-4).
He said some parts of the curses went thus, Reuben, “Unstable as water, you shall not excel”.
The curse took effect on him and the consequence was that, he forfeited the preeminence and birthright that belonged to him as the firstborn and not until the words were reversed by Moses in Deuteronomy 33:6 where he offered prayers for the tribe of Reuben, saying “Let Reuben live, and not die; and let not his men be few,” which is viewed as a reversal of this curse.
The clergyman reiterated that one of the men who understood the potency of a spoken word in the bible and should be emulated, is, Hezekiah.
He said Hezekiah knew the efficacies of both the good words and the bad ones, stressing that, the knowledge of that, made him to object to the news of death brought to him by Isaiah. He asked God for an intervention and he got it.
” In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”
“Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, “Remember, Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
“Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will add fifteen years to your life”, Isaiah 38:1-5.
The renowned man of God further urged believers to speak up and should not swallow poison out of shame and fear but to be bold enough to challenge every negative words spoken against them in their kneels inclusive.
He also urged Nigerians to learn to speak positively about their country, pray for their leaders as God will definitely hear them.
He said one of the problems we are having in this country is that, we have too many persons speaking negatively than positively about the country which should be stopped.
He therefore called for attitudinal change among Nigerians urging them to love the country and pray for their leaders to be able to lead the country aright.