Books that are heavily and richly illuminated are sometimes known as "display books" in church contexts, or "luxury manuscripts", especially if secular works. In the first millennium, these were most likely to be Gospel Books, such as the Lindisfarne Gospels and the Book of Kells. The Romanesque and Gothic periods saw the creation of many large illuminated complete bibles. The largest surviving example of these is The Codex Gigas in Sweden; it is so massive that it takes three librarians to lift it. Other illuminated liturgical books appeared during and after the Romanesque period. These included psalters, and small, personal devotional books known as books of hours. These items were often richly illuminated with miniatures, decorated initials and floral borders. They were costly and therefore only owned by wealthy patrons. As the production of manuscripts shifted from monasteries to the public sector during the High Middle Ages, illuminated books began to reflect secular interests.[7] These included short stories, legends of the saints, tales of chivalry, mythological stories, and even accounts of criminal, social or miraculous occurrences. Some of these were also freely used by storytellers and itinerant actors to support their plays. The Byzantine world produced manuscripts in its own style, versions of which spread to other Orthodox and Eastern Christian areas. With their traditions of literacy uninterrupted by the Middle Ages, the Muslim world, especially on the Iberian Peninsula, was instrumental in delivering ancient classic works to the growing intellectual circles and universities of Western Europe throughout the 12th century. Books were produced there in large numbers and on paper for the first time in Europe, and with them full treatises on the sciences, especially astrology and medicine where illumination was required to have profuse and accurate representations with the text. The Gothic period, which generally saw an increase in the production of illuminated books, also saw more secular works such as chronicles and works of literature illuminated. Wealthy people began to build up personal libraries; Philip the Bold probably had the largest personal library of his time in the mid-15th century, is estimated to have had about 600 illuminated manuscripts, whilst a number of his friends and relations had several dozen. Wealthy patrons, however, could have personal prayer books made especially for them, usually in the form of richly illuminated "books of hours", which set down prayers appropriate for various times in the liturgical day. One of the best known examples is the extravagant Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry for a French prince. Illuminated manuscripts housed in the 16th-century Ethiopian Orthodox Church of Ura Kidane Mehret, Zege Peninsula, Lake Tana, Ethiopia Up to the 12th century, most manuscripts were produced in monasteries in order to add to the library or after receiving a commission from a wealthy patron. Larger

1. FAITHFULNESS IS THE KEY TO GOD’S
BLESSINGS
Proverbs 28:20
There are two types of blessings in general
1. Common Blessing
2. Unique blessings

2. SIX AREAS OF LIFE THAT PEOPLE ARE BEING
MOST UNFAITHFUL AND WHAT DOES THE
BIBLE SAY ABOUT IT:
1. Being faithful to God and his word
-All of us are forced to wait at certain times of
life and waiting is a time when our faithfulness is
put into test
-We need to be faithful to God’s word also (Psalms
119:11).
-God will certainly bless when we abide in his word
(John 15:7; Isaiah 26:3)

3. 2. Being faithful to the church.
-The local church is every Christian’s spiritual
family
(1 Corinthians 1:10).
-Faithfulness to one’s local church is best
expressed by his obedience to his
leaders(Hebrews 13:7; 1 Corinthians 4:1-21
-Always support them in ministry, as they labor
for the Kingdom of God, in tears and in sweat,
(1 Thessalonians 5:12-13; 1 Timothy 5:17-18).

4. 3. Being faithful to your family
- Husbands are commanded to love their
wives like Christ loved the Church and gave
his life for her and wives are told to submit
to their husbands, (Ephesians 5:22-25).
- Husbands should be faithful to their wives
and wives should be faithful to their
husbands, (Hebrews 13:4).
- Children are told to obey their parents in
the Lord. It’s a conditional
promise(Ephesians 6:1-4).

5. 4. Be faithful to your finances
-Plan your expenses with great care, (Luke 14:28-
30). Constantly give attention to your financial
health. (Proverb 27:23)
-Pay your tithe on time. Everything you have belongs
to God. But he is asking you to give one tenth of it
back, for the welfare of his servant. He has promised
to bless your tithe and told you to test him on it,
(Malachi 3:10).
-Give regularly, in addition to the tithe. Not because
God wants your money. Giving is a form of worship.
To worship means to surrender your whole self and
surrendering your finances is a good place to begin
with, (Proverbs 3:9).

6. 5. Being faithful to one’s country
-The Bible commands us to submit to the
government because it’s the established will of
God, (Romans 13:1).
-The Bible forbids rebelling against the
governing authorities. Rebellion against the
government is rebellion against God, (Romans
13:2).
-Do not like be pagans and criticize the
government authorities. God is in control of
all. The Bible also urges us to pray for those
who govern, (1 Timothy 2:1-4).

7. 6. Being faithful at the work place
- We are to obey our employers in the Lord
(Ephesians 6:5).
- Don’t steal from your employer or deceive him.
We should work for our employers as if we are
working for God, (Ephesians 6:8)
- Employers should treat their employees with
respect. God will judge the employer that oppresses
his employees, (Ephesians 6:9).

8. CONCLUSION:
-Search yourself and know
whether you have been unfaithful
in any of these areas.
-Remember, that the one who
conceal his sin shall not PROSPER
-But God will restore us if we
confess and renounce them,
(Proverbs 28:13).

10. THANK YOU
FOR
LISTENING…