When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.Philip answered him, “It would take more than half a yearʼs wages[a] to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” John 6:5-7 (NIV)

Can I achieve my goals? This project is expensive. How can I finance it? Who will help me accomplish this dream? You may be pondering over some of these questions as analyzing your project has revealed some difficulties. Every project needs to be analyzed before committing to it as Jesus stated, “For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesnʼt sit down first and compute the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? Luke 14:28 (NET). Analysis highlights the various risk and costs which may bring fear or resistance to starting the project. Analysis simply means, to resolve into its element. So when a project is resolved into its various elements, certain parts may appear too difficult to achieve. This happened to the disciples leading them to contemplate the following: How can we feed 5000 people at a desert where there is no bakery?

Even if there is a bakery, we do not have enough money to buy the bread we need! We need a years wages to undertake this project! This is what analysis yields. Analysis as an acronym is, Arresting the Nurturing Approaches of the Lord as Your Senses Inform the Situation. Now the question is, after the analysis, when do you apply faith to the situation? Where is your faith? Faith is the currency that overcomes risks. Faith is not denial of the calculated risk but an affirmation of the power of Godsʼ word over the analyzed difficulties.

The woman with the issue of blood declared by faith after her analysis, “If I may but touch the hem of his garments I may be healed” (Mark 5:28). The servants at the wedding of Cana (John 2:5-7) decided to serve water as wine, believing the instructions from Jesus without analyzing, how water can be turned into wine. In this text, Jesus knew what to do but still gave the instructions to test the disciples.

What has the Lord instructed you to undertake? What visions are buried in the recesses of you mind? What analysis has paralyzed your progress? Have you come to the conclusion that it is impossible to attain your goals? If you have, then begin to think differently. Do not allow your senses to take over and arrest the nurturing approaches of the Lord. It is therefore time to allow the nurturing approaches of the Lord to guide your projects. Follow His instructions just as the servants at the wedding of Cana did and declare that you will accomplish your dream as the Lord nurtures the project. God bless and have godspeed with your project. Amen

Rex Obeng