Today’s message
Read and reflect
MOMENT OF ENCOUNTER DEVOTIONAL
By Prophet Dr. Abiodun Adesida
When Your Christianity Cannot Move Without Someone Pushing You!
TODAY'S ENCOUNTER
Ẹ̀yin olóòótọ́ ọmọ Ọlọ́run, ẹ jẹ́ ká sọ òótọ́ fún ara wa lónìí!
There is a particular species of Christians in our generation that deserves serious spiritual examination. I call them **ONÍGBÀGBỌ́ ỌMỌLÀNKÈ — WHEELBARROW CHRISTIANS!**
A wheelbarrow may have a wheel, but it has no personal determination. It possesses the capacity to carry a load but cannot decide its destination. Unless somebody lifts its handles and pushes it, it remains exactly where it was abandoned!
Unfortunately, this describes the spiritual condition of many believers today.
They cannot pray unless a prophet announces seven days of fasting.
They cannot study their Bible unless Sunday school teachers threaten to ask questions.
They cannot give unless the pastor preaches about Malachi 3:10.
They cannot repent unless somebody dreams that their name has appeared on the devil's attendance register!
**Àwọn wọ̀nyí ni onígbàgbọ́ ọmọlànkè! Bí ẹnikan kò bá tì wọ́n, wọn ò ní lọ síwájú!**
Some Christians have attended prayer mountains for twenty years, yet they cannot pray independently for twenty minutes!
They know the telephone numbers of fifteen prophets but cannot remember fifteen Bible verses.
They can describe yesterday's dream in twenty paragraphs but cannot explain the meaning of salvation in two sentences!
Ah! Ẹ̀yin ọmọ Ọlọ́run, ṣé ẹ̀sìn ni èyí tàbí ìrìnàjò ọmọlànkè?
EPHRAIM: THE HALF-BAKED CHRISTIAN
In Hosea 7:8, God described Ephraim as a cake not turned.
In the ancient cooking process, a cake left unturned over the fire would become burnt on one side and undercooked on the other.
What a devastating picture of spiritual inconsistency!
Ephraim had mixed with surrounding nations and absorbed practices contrary to God's covenant.
Today, some Christians are similarly divided.
They are spiritually hot during Sunday worship but morally cold during Monday business transactions.
They speak in tongues during prayer meetings but speak in lies during business negotiations.
They rebuke demons publicly but secretly entertain the very sins they condemn.
**Wọ́n gbóná ní ṣọ́ọ̀ṣì, ṣùgbọ́n wọ́n tutù nílé!**
Beloved, Christianity is not merely about how loudly you shout *Hallelujah!* It is about how faithfully you live when nobody is watching.
God desires spiritual maturity, not religious performance.
STOP ALLOWING DREAMS AND PROPHECIES TO CONTROL YOUR CHRISTIAN LIFE!
Let me address another disturbing manifestation of wheelbarrow Christianity.
Some believers no longer make decisions through biblical wisdom, prayer, and godly understanding. Everything depends on what somebody dreamed!
Before travelling, they need a prophecy.
Before starting a business, they need three visions.
Before accepting a marriage proposal, they must consult five prophets.
Even when they dream about eating rice, they wake up looking for a deliverance minister!
**Ẹ̀yin onígbàgbọ́ alálàá, ẹ jẹ́ ká sin Ọlọ́run pẹ̀lú òye!**
Dreams and prophecies have their place in Scripture, but they must never replace God's written Word, spiritual discernment, personal responsibility, and obedience.
First Thessalonians 5:20–21 teaches us not to despise prophecies but to test all things and hold fast to what is good.
Not every dream is divine revelation. Not every frightening night experience is a spiritual attack.
Sometimes, what you need is not another prophet interpreting your dreams but a disciplined Christian life shaped by Scripture.
**Prophecy should strengthen your walk with God, not replace your responsibility to walk with Him.**
YOUR PASTOR IS NOT YOUR SPIRITUAL WHEELBARROW PUSHER!
Consider the Berean believers in Acts 17:11. They received the apostolic message eagerly but examined the Scriptures daily to verify what they heard.
They were not spiritually lazy consumers of religious information.
Similarly, Paul instructed believers in Philippians 2:12–13 to work out their salvation with fear and trembling, recognising that God Himself was working within them.
Notice the balance!
God supplies the grace, but believers must respond through obedience.
Your pastor can teach you, but he cannot study the Bible on your behalf.
Your prophet can encourage you, but he cannot practise holiness for you.
Your church can organise prayer meetings, but it cannot manufacture personal devotion inside an unwilling heart.
**Àdúrà pásítọ̀ dára, ṣùgbọ́n ìwọ náà gbọ́dọ̀ kọ́ bí a ṣe ń gbàdúrà!**
The tragedy is not that you sometimes need encouragement. Every Christian needs fellowship and support.
The tragedy begins when encouragement becomes a permanent substitute for personal conviction.
THE MARKS OF A MATURE CHRISTIAN
A mature believer does not wait for calamity before praying.
He does not wait for a frightening dream before examining his life.
He does not wait for public recognition before serving.
He does not wait for a sermon on forgiveness before releasing bitterness.
He does not need someone constantly threatening him with divine punishment before choosing righteousness.
Why?
Because his Christianity is rooted in a living relationship with Christ.
**Galatians 5:25:** “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”
The Holy Spirit is not merely given to make believers fall under anointing during church services. He empowers them to walk in truth, develop godly character, resist sin, and bear spiritual fruit.
Beloved, it is possible to fall under the anointing every Sunday and still refuse to stand upright in righteousness on Monday!
**Kì í ṣe iye ìgbà tí o ṣubú níbi àdúrà ló ṣe pàtàkì, bí kò ṣe bí o ṣe ń rìn pẹ̀lú Ọlọ́run lẹ́yìn àdúrà!**
MORAL AND SPIRITUAL LESSON
A wheelbarrow Christian measures spirituality by the number of people pushing him.
A mature Christian measures growth by increasing faithfulness to Christ.
Do not misunderstand me. Christianity is not a journey of self-sufficiency. We need the Holy Spirit, pastors, teachers, fellowship, correction, and encouragement.
But spiritual assistance must produce maturity, not perpetual dependency.
The purpose of Christian discipleship is not to make people permanently dependent on the preacher but to establish them firmly in Christ.
**A good pastor does not merely gather followers around himself; he raises disciples who can stand faithfully before God.**
YOUR BROTHER,
PROPHET DR. ABIODUN ADESIDA, PhD
CAC IBUDO ÒNÀ ABAYỌ
(Solution Center,) Iyara, Kogi State
📞 08058140045
By Prophet Dr. Abiodun Adesida
When Your Christianity Cannot Move Without Someone Pushing You!
TODAY'S ENCOUNTER
Ẹ̀yin olóòótọ́ ọmọ Ọlọ́run, ẹ jẹ́ ká sọ òótọ́ fún ara wa lónìí!
There is a particular species of Christians in our generation that deserves serious spiritual examination. I call them **ONÍGBÀGBỌ́ ỌMỌLÀNKÈ — WHEELBARROW CHRISTIANS!**
A wheelbarrow may have a wheel, but it has no personal determination. It possesses the capacity to carry a load but cannot decide its destination. Unless somebody lifts its handles and pushes it, it remains exactly where it was abandoned!
Unfortunately, this describes the spiritual condition of many believers today.
They cannot pray unless a prophet announces seven days of fasting.
They cannot study their Bible unless Sunday school teachers threaten to ask questions.
They cannot give unless the pastor preaches about Malachi 3:10.
They cannot repent unless somebody dreams that their name has appeared on the devil's attendance register!
**Àwọn wọ̀nyí ni onígbàgbọ́ ọmọlànkè! Bí ẹnikan kò bá tì wọ́n, wọn ò ní lọ síwájú!**
Some Christians have attended prayer mountains for twenty years, yet they cannot pray independently for twenty minutes!
They know the telephone numbers of fifteen prophets but cannot remember fifteen Bible verses.
They can describe yesterday's dream in twenty paragraphs but cannot explain the meaning of salvation in two sentences!
Ah! Ẹ̀yin ọmọ Ọlọ́run, ṣé ẹ̀sìn ni èyí tàbí ìrìnàjò ọmọlànkè?
EPHRAIM: THE HALF-BAKED CHRISTIAN
In Hosea 7:8, God described Ephraim as a cake not turned.
In the ancient cooking process, a cake left unturned over the fire would become burnt on one side and undercooked on the other.
What a devastating picture of spiritual inconsistency!
Ephraim had mixed with surrounding nations and absorbed practices contrary to God's covenant.
Today, some Christians are similarly divided.
They are spiritually hot during Sunday worship but morally cold during Monday business transactions.
They speak in tongues during prayer meetings but speak in lies during business negotiations.
They rebuke demons publicly but secretly entertain the very sins they condemn.
**Wọ́n gbóná ní ṣọ́ọ̀ṣì, ṣùgbọ́n wọ́n tutù nílé!**
Beloved, Christianity is not merely about how loudly you shout *Hallelujah!* It is about how faithfully you live when nobody is watching.
God desires spiritual maturity, not religious performance.
STOP ALLOWING DREAMS AND PROPHECIES TO CONTROL YOUR CHRISTIAN LIFE!
Let me address another disturbing manifestation of wheelbarrow Christianity.
Some believers no longer make decisions through biblical wisdom, prayer, and godly understanding. Everything depends on what somebody dreamed!
Before travelling, they need a prophecy.
Before starting a business, they need three visions.
Before accepting a marriage proposal, they must consult five prophets.
Even when they dream about eating rice, they wake up looking for a deliverance minister!
**Ẹ̀yin onígbàgbọ́ alálàá, ẹ jẹ́ ká sin Ọlọ́run pẹ̀lú òye!**
Dreams and prophecies have their place in Scripture, but they must never replace God's written Word, spiritual discernment, personal responsibility, and obedience.
First Thessalonians 5:20–21 teaches us not to despise prophecies but to test all things and hold fast to what is good.
Not every dream is divine revelation. Not every frightening night experience is a spiritual attack.
Sometimes, what you need is not another prophet interpreting your dreams but a disciplined Christian life shaped by Scripture.
**Prophecy should strengthen your walk with God, not replace your responsibility to walk with Him.**
YOUR PASTOR IS NOT YOUR SPIRITUAL WHEELBARROW PUSHER!
Consider the Berean believers in Acts 17:11. They received the apostolic message eagerly but examined the Scriptures daily to verify what they heard.
They were not spiritually lazy consumers of religious information.
Similarly, Paul instructed believers in Philippians 2:12–13 to work out their salvation with fear and trembling, recognising that God Himself was working within them.
Notice the balance!
God supplies the grace, but believers must respond through obedience.
Your pastor can teach you, but he cannot study the Bible on your behalf.
Your prophet can encourage you, but he cannot practise holiness for you.
Your church can organise prayer meetings, but it cannot manufacture personal devotion inside an unwilling heart.
**Àdúrà pásítọ̀ dára, ṣùgbọ́n ìwọ náà gbọ́dọ̀ kọ́ bí a ṣe ń gbàdúrà!**
The tragedy is not that you sometimes need encouragement. Every Christian needs fellowship and support.
The tragedy begins when encouragement becomes a permanent substitute for personal conviction.
THE MARKS OF A MATURE CHRISTIAN
A mature believer does not wait for calamity before praying.
He does not wait for a frightening dream before examining his life.
He does not wait for public recognition before serving.
He does not wait for a sermon on forgiveness before releasing bitterness.
He does not need someone constantly threatening him with divine punishment before choosing righteousness.
Why?
Because his Christianity is rooted in a living relationship with Christ.
**Galatians 5:25:** “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”
The Holy Spirit is not merely given to make believers fall under anointing during church services. He empowers them to walk in truth, develop godly character, resist sin, and bear spiritual fruit.
Beloved, it is possible to fall under the anointing every Sunday and still refuse to stand upright in righteousness on Monday!
**Kì í ṣe iye ìgbà tí o ṣubú níbi àdúrà ló ṣe pàtàkì, bí kò ṣe bí o ṣe ń rìn pẹ̀lú Ọlọ́run lẹ́yìn àdúrà!**
MORAL AND SPIRITUAL LESSON
A wheelbarrow Christian measures spirituality by the number of people pushing him.
A mature Christian measures growth by increasing faithfulness to Christ.
Do not misunderstand me. Christianity is not a journey of self-sufficiency. We need the Holy Spirit, pastors, teachers, fellowship, correction, and encouragement.
But spiritual assistance must produce maturity, not perpetual dependency.
The purpose of Christian discipleship is not to make people permanently dependent on the preacher but to establish them firmly in Christ.
**A good pastor does not merely gather followers around himself; he raises disciples who can stand faithfully before God.**
YOUR BROTHER,
PROPHET DR. ABIODUN ADESIDA, PhD
CAC IBUDO ÒNÀ ABAYỌ
(Solution Center,) Iyara, Kogi State
📞 08058140045
Reflection
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
If your pastor stopped calling you, would you still pray?
If nobody reminded you about church, would you still worship?
If no prophet interpreted your dreams, would you still trust God's Word?
If nobody supervised your conduct, would you still live honestly?
**Ṣé ìwọ jẹ́ ọmọ Ọlọ́run tó ń rìn pẹ̀lú Ẹ̀mí Mímọ́, tàbí ọmọlànkè tí ènìyàn gbọ́dọ̀ máa tì?**
Remember: **A wheelbarrow may travel a thousand kilometres, but without the person pushing it, it has developed no ability to move itself.**
Likewise, years of church attendance do not automatically equal spiritual maturity.
FINAL WORD:
Stop waiting for someone to push you into obedience. The grace of God is already calling you to grow!*
If your pastor stopped calling you, would you still pray?
If nobody reminded you about church, would you still worship?
If no prophet interpreted your dreams, would you still trust God's Word?
If nobody supervised your conduct, would you still live honestly?
**Ṣé ìwọ jẹ́ ọmọ Ọlọ́run tó ń rìn pẹ̀lú Ẹ̀mí Mímọ́, tàbí ọmọlànkè tí ènìyàn gbọ́dọ̀ máa tì?**
Remember: **A wheelbarrow may travel a thousand kilometres, but without the person pushing it, it has developed no ability to move itself.**
Likewise, years of church attendance do not automatically equal spiritual maturity.
FINAL WORD:
Stop waiting for someone to push you into obedience. The grace of God is already calling you to grow!*
Prayer
TODAY'S PRAYER
Heavenly Father, deliver me from spiritual laziness, religious dependency, and half-hearted Christianity.
Set my heart on fire with genuine love for Your Word.
Teach me to pray without being compelled, obey without being threatened, serve without seeking applause, and live righteously even when nobody is watching.
Holy Spirit, strengthen my convictions and establish me in spiritual maturity.
Kí n má ṣe jẹ́ onígbàgbọ́ ọmọlànkè. Kí n jẹ́ ọmọ Ọlọ́run tí Ẹ̀mí Mímọ́ ń darí.
Heavenly Father, deliver me from spiritual laziness, religious dependency, and half-hearted Christianity.
Set my heart on fire with genuine love for Your Word.
Teach me to pray without being compelled, obey without being threatened, serve without seeking applause, and live righteously even when nobody is watching.
Holy Spirit, strengthen my convictions and establish me in spiritual maturity.
Kí n má ṣe jẹ́ onígbàgbọ́ ọmọlànkè. Kí n jẹ́ ọmọ Ọlọ́run tí Ẹ̀mí Mímọ́ ń darí.