'Behave'
()
About this ebook
‘Behaving well’ is the key to our survival as a ‘specie’. God gave us the privilege and gift of conscious moral existence, and he also gave us the ‘rules’ for its godly enjoyment, sustenance and ‘profitable’ continuity. For us to continue to ‘exist’ we must take to heart, respect and follow these rules; we must ‘learn’ how to ‘behave well’. Or else, we will soon go into ‘extinction’! Why and how? What does it mean to ‘behave well’, and what does it mean to be ‘ill behaved’?
Michael Adedeji
a servant of Jesus Christ, preacher and teacher of the Gospel, author, songwriter, singer and instrumentalist. Pastors at Zion City Church of God,Lagos,Nigeria.
Read more from Michael Adedeji
The Dimensions Of Matter And The Spirit Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSpiritual Cocaine Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Wisdom of The Serpent And The Innocence of The Dove Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhat Is Truth? Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLife Is Beautiful Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Core Of Life's Business Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMarked for Demolition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to 'Behave'
Related ebooks
How To Become Your Best Friend? Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThinking About Thinking: How the Brain Creates Your World Automatically Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Road to Character by David Brooks (Trivia-On-Books) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOutsmart Your Instincts: How The Behavioral Innovation™ Approach Drives Your Company Forward Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSummary of Robin Hanson's The Elephant in the Brain Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLeopardology: The Hunt for Profit in a Tough Global Economy! Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMeta-Leadership: How to See What Others Don’t and Make Great Decisions Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWelcome Home: Release Addictions and Return to Love Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTHE NATURAL HIGH: Secrets to Overcoming Instant Gratification and Finding Inner Peace Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Summary of Ian Tuhovsky's The Science of Self Talk Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsElevate: An Essential Guide to Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Summary of Bronnie Ware's Top Five Regrets of the Dying Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5No Wasted Movement: Growing in Discomfort Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Science of Being Human: Why We Behave, Think and Feel the Way We Do Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSummary of Thibaut Meurisse's Strategic Mindset Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSummary: “The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life" by David Brooks - Discussion Prompts Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Summary of Learning to Love Midlife by Chip Conley: 12 Reasons Why Life Gets Better with Age Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Power of Ignorance Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Say Thank You for Everything: The secrets of being a great manager – strategies and tactics that get results Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSummary of Michael Neill's The Inside-Out Revolution Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Naked Truth of a Healer: The Path to My Authentic Self Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSummary of Frank I. Luntz's Words That Work Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg (Trivia-on-Books) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSwim!: How a Shark, a Suckerfish, and a Parasite Teach You Leadership, Mentoring, and Next Level Success Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSummary of Suneel Gupta's Backable Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Summary of Haemin Sunim's The Things You Can See Only When You Slow Down Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Siddhartha Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMe Power Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSummary: “Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don't Know” by Malcolm Gladwell - Discussion Prompts Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Christianity For You
Winning the War in Your Mind: Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Bible Recap: A One-Year Guide to Reading and Understanding the Entire Bible Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Good Girl's Guide to Great Sex: Creating a Marriage That's Both Holy and Hot Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Book of Enoch Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Your Brain's Not Broken: Strategies for Navigating Your Emotions and Life with ADHD Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Screwtape Letters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Holy Bible (World English Bible, Easy Navigation) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Don't Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table: It's Time to Win the Battle of Your Mind... Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Mere Christianity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Lead When You're Not in Charge: Leveraging Influence When You Lack Authority Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Law of Connection: Lesson 10 from The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Boundaries Updated and Expanded Edition: When to Say Yes, How to Say No To Take Control of Your Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Warrior of the Light: A Manual Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Story: The Bible as One Continuing Story of God and His People Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies About Who You Are so You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I'll Start Again Monday: Break the Cycle of Unhealthy Eating Habits with Lasting Spiritual Satisfaction Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Four Loves Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Boundaries Workbook: When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Uninvited: Living Loved When You Feel Less Than, Left Out, and Lonely Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Changes That Heal: Four Practical Steps to a Happier, Healthier You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Less Fret, More Faith: An 11-Week Action Plan to Overcome Anxiety Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Boundaries with Kids: How Healthy Choices Grow Healthy Children Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anxious for Nothing: Finding Calm in a Chaotic World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for 'Behave'
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
'Behave' - Michael Adedeji
‘BEHAVE’
By Michael Adedeji
Copyright 2014 Michael Adedeji
Smashwords Edition License Notes
Thank you for downloading this free e-book. You are welcome to share it with your friends. This book may be reproduced, copied and distributed for non-commercial purposes, provided the book remains in its complete original form. If you enjoyed this book, please return to smashwords.com to discover other works by this author. Thank you for your support.
Dedication
This book is dedicated to God the Father, Jesus Christ His Son, and the Holy Spirit. They brought forth life and the universe, and they were thoughtful in creation.
They sustain and administer creation by their knowledge, wisdom and power, and they are lavish in their love and commitment towards man.
You are forever appreciated, glorified and praised!
Note:
Unless otherwise stated, all scriptures are taken with permission from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by the International Bible Society.
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1: A People And A World Out Of Control
The Assault on our Communal Foundation
The Mystery of Discipline and Rigor
Have we lost Our Mind?
Chapter 2: Our Agitation For ‘Independence’
Chapter 3: ‘Behave!’
Good and Evil
Chapter 4: Why ‘Behaving Well’ Is Difficult For Us
‘Denying’ God
Divine Help to the Rescue
God’s Love Properly Understood
Chapter 5: It Is Possible
The ‘Mystery’ of Righteousness And Holiness
About The Author
Contact Author Online
Introduction
Man is going full throttle in the direction of ill-behavior, perversion and wickedness, showing little or no restrain as he speeds along. We seem to find more pleasure in engaging in and propagating impropriety and wickedness than living morally and spiritually disciplined and decent lives. More than ever before, we seem to resent spiritual and moral discipline thinking or claiming that they infringe on our freedom to do what ‘feels good’ to us; we think they impose unnecessary and many times, ‘unbearable’ checks on our desires, drives, urges and pleasures.
But going down the road of spiritually and morally unrestrained lives is inevitable destruction. The scripture confirms this; "All a man’s ways seem right to him, but the LORD weighs the heart…There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death…A man who strays from the path of understanding comes to rest in the company of the dead" (Proverbs 16:25; 21:2,16). We seem to have forgotten that life is woven around not just physical laws but also spiritual laws as well. We didn’t create life and the myriad of laws and arrangements that keep it going and running. We need to realize and understand that relating irresponsibly with the spiritual and physical laws of life has very grievous repercussions.
Many of us are angry with God; we think he’s spoiling the fun of ‘living our lives to the fullest’ by the restraints of his laws, principles and commandments. Our primary grouse with him is he insists we must ‘behave well’; that we should truly reflect his nature and be ‘like Him’. This can only be achieved through our submission, commitment and respect for his divine instructions and commandments. Somehow, this does not ‘go down well’ with many of us. Some of us have even openly labeled God an inconsiderate, ‘shrouded’, vindictive, poke-nosing perfectionist.
Hmm!
We bring charges against him like: He doesn’t mind his own business (what other business has God other than the running of his creation?), he’s too morally and spiritually demanding, he wants to ‘vet’ and supervise everything we think, say, or do, he imposes his standards and rules on us without asking for our opinion, and he refuses to compromise on these imposed standards and rules, knowing fully well we are ‘imperfect beings’
OUR PRIMARY GROUSE WITH GOD IS HE INSISTS
WE MUST ‘BEHAVE WELL’; THAT WE SHOULD
TRULY REFLECT HIS NATURE AND BE ‘LIKE HIM’...
SOMEHOW, THIS DOES NOT ‘GO DOWN WELL’ WITH
MANY OF US. SOME OF US HAVE EVEN OPENLY
LABELED GOD AN "INCONSIDERATE, ‘SHROUDED’,
VINDICTIVE, POKE-NOSING PERFECTIONIST." HMM!
The accusations continue: To add his ‘vindictive salt’ to our already festering sores from the lacerations of his moral blade, he still wants to ‘judge and punish us severely’ for failing to comply or ‘meet up’ with his obviously humanly unattainable moral and spiritual standards (God’s standards are only sinful-man unattainable); why can’t he just leave us alone to be who we are (whatever that turns out to be!)?
Of course, we are so many things - the good, the bad, and the ugly. But, primarily, we are very ‘intelligent’ beings who love liberty, rights, knowledge, pleasure, and adventure (LRKPA). God created us and fitted us with ‘LRKPA’ because of his love, generosity, care, and thoughtfulness (wisdom) towards us. ‘LRKPA’ are attributes of God which he gave us the privilege to have and share alongside with him. The scriptures testify to the fact that ‘LRKPA’ originated from him:
WE ARE SO MANY THINGS