The devil cannot love

The devil cannot love. The devil cannot forgive, therefore the devil is the most miserable of persons. His anger and bitterness grows from age to age. It knows no decreases, it shall never end. His fury shall rise as the smoke for all eternity. Even in chains he curses heaven. He still holds the deep resentment for humanity. He walks around like a lion on this earth to cause chaos. Never could he strife for peace. Destruction and death are his two angels, poverty and greed are his cherub, pride is the crown on his head and hatred is his black garment. The devil cannot love. His kingdom is built on enmity, everyone in his camp is abominable. He lurks in powerful places, he sleeps in the harlots house. He makes friends with hypocrites and wages war on the penitent. The devil cannot love but he lies, he steals and cheats. He is vile, base and pomp. Therefore children, beware of the devil, especially of the devil inside of you. 

K.Oni

My pleasure is entirely in the Lord of magnificent hosts

God of all lights, I do pray for your people, that their 

treasure will be found in thee, for you are worth more 

than ten minutes a day, more than an hour a week, 

and 

more than a thanks for every meal. For when men in 

their leisures do employ, rarely is it seen that it should 

be wrapped up in thee, for indeed they joy in health, 

dance and play and do their favourite things, but 

rare as a phoenix seen, once a millennia, that a soul 

should say, 'my pleasure is entirely in the Lord of 

magnificent hosts.' 

Reading or swimming, playing or listening, this alone 

satisfies 

my soul: Worshipping my Lord, desiring his presence 

alone.


K.Oni

Christ may lead us through waters deep

Christ may lead us through waters deep, trials will surely come our way, when rich, poverty may suddenly strike. Fret not, its Christ testing thee.

Christ may lead us through waters deep, through oceans vast, and through valleys dark. When dancing, paralyses may suddenly strike. Fret not, its Christ testing thee.

Christ may lead us through waters deep, through deaths billowing waves, and through worldly scorn. Fret not, its Christ testing thee, for at last, He will lead us home.

K.Oni

By faith I lean heavily upon the cross of Christ

By faith I lean heavily upon the cross of Christ, wet with the 

saviour's blood that flows. For it is my remedy to wash away

my 

sins, and take away my guilt. 

By faith I do see Christ, my 

faithful high priest, taking some of his own blood with his 

finger marking it on my forehead. By this he makes 

atonement 

for me, and now I smell ever pleasing to the God above.



K.Oni

The Joy of confession

Sinner: Dear Sir, the devil has set my mind on fire, it groans and laments, left sacrilege, defiled by the lustful hands of sin. Depression thus enters, taking her seat as a wicked witch blackening every ray of white which served as joy to my soul. She orders her minions to burn to ashes every seed of hope, and to open wide the gates, so that all the despairing thoughts as well as all the soul destroying vices may enter in. Virtue is locked in prison, Christ has fallen and the self weeps in pity. The soul is in unbreakable chains, and darkness runs wild. Is this the portion for a saint who did not guard his soul from sin? That after many dabbling in the devil's water, that now I am drowned by it. Jerusalem the city of refuge is far off. Will I perish in Babylon, eating by the Lions that slept with Daniel. They touched him not for he was clean, yea holy, but I, a most disgusting thing, should not be worth their digestion but rather their anger in tearing me to pieces. Is heaven so offended that she would leave me to continually lay on thorns. Dejection now holds me down, her chords are around my waist and neck. Resignation does strike her broken chords, calling me to take her strings and use it as the means of my escape. I shall therefore enter hell, dragging my soul into the burning lake with great sorrow and regret.

Sir: My dear friend, the devil and your old man may deal blows at you. But don't then start dealing blows to yourself. David fell, but he rose up to fight the enemy. Peter fell, but he did not hang himself. Many saints have fallen from their heights, but none who continued to look to the Savior ever perished. Nay, none of them had their eternity in hell. Will you take hope by the hands like David and Peter? Will you see the mercy and love in your Father's eyes rather than the guilt in your eyes. O reach out to him. He loves thee and his sword his held out not to cut thee but to cut off your chains. 

K.Oni

I sought him, and he answered me

Yes my Jesus is worthy of worship. He is worthy of praise. For who is like Him that has broken every chain that kept me away from the Father's love. He made my salvation effectual; that my wandering feet would end up before the throne of his Father. I sought him, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Therefore, my soul makes its boast in the LORD; let the humble hear and be glad. Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I see by faith the excellencies of Christ Jesus. Such marvelous beauty has won my heart that I am drawn heavenwards. Thus the charm of the world only sound to me as the hiss of a serpent, whereas his melody, yea, his divine song is as the sun compared to the candles of Beethoven's grandest symphonies. Those who look to him are radiant - they shine with luminous intensity. They lack no good thing. Will you not come and see for yourself that beauty which exists in no other? If you know not how, ask for the gospel, ask to be told the gospel of Christ.

K.Oni

Too young to vote?

This week in his conference speech Ed Miliband joined a growing band of politicians promising to lower the voting age to 16. Alex Salmond led the way, the Lib Dems then followed suit and now Labour have done the same.

Disenfranchisement is a serious issue. Young people are not interested in politics. Would giving more young people the vote help?

At the last election only 44 per cent of those aged 18 to 24 voted, compared with 73 per cent of those aged 65 and over. It is no surprise that pensions (notice they are never called benefits) are protected by the coalition, while university fees tripled.

The younger generation don’t use the vote they have and as a consequence policy is skewed towards an older generation. Free bus passes, TV licences and a winter fuel allowance for pensioners regardless of income make sense when you look at who votes.

Being allowed to vote is one thing, using it is something completely different.

So is a 16-year-old mature enough to vote?

At 16, you can live on your own, get married, pay taxes and serve in the army. But you will need your parents’ permission to get married unless you live in Scotland, and you won’t be allowed to serve on the frontline in war zones until you are 18.

You are not allowed to buy tobacco, alcohol, knives, fireworks or solvents. A 16-year-old cannot enter a casino or drink in a pub. You have to be 17 to hold a driving licence. But, from the age of 13 anyone is allowed to work part-time and in certain professions like the theatre, sport or modelling there is no minimum age, provided parents get official approval. Surely there should be no taxation without representation? But how many 16-year-olds actually pay tax?

The reality is that legislation is moving to keep young people in education or training until they are 18. The recent trend has been towards greater protection of children, raising the legal definition of a child from 16 to 18 in some legislation.

Adulthood is being delayed. Generation Y or the Millennials, as they are known, have pushed back the five milestones of adulthood: completing schools, leaving home, becoming financially independent, marrying and having kids.

In the UK, the average age at which men get married is 32 years, while for women it is now 30. Back in 1981 it was 25.4 and 23.1 respectively. So if people are growing up later, should we be pushing the voting age back up to 21?

Those aged between 16 and 18 do occupy an unusual status in the UK. It is strange what as a society we have decided they can and cannot do. If we allowed 16-year-olds to vote we would join an unusual group of countries – Brazil, Ecuador, Austria, Nicaragua, Cuba and Argentina. These countries are not top of the list of thriving democracies.

But there is another point worth considering. If you are a Christian reading this article, then the chances are you made that decision before your 16th birthday. Most people who become Christians do so when they are young, and those that make this decision before their teenage years are more likely to remain committed.

The Church has invested a huge amount of time and resource into children’s and youth ministry believing those under 16 can make a life-changing decision. So why not allow those same people to vote?

Peter Lynas is director of Evangelical Alliance Northern Ireland.