Word For Today: DIVINE VISITATION

Memorise: Then spake Joshua to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon. Joshua 10:12

Read: Luke 1:26-33, 

26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,

27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.

28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.

29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.

30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.

31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus.

32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:

33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

Word For Today: The Holy God

Memorise: But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. Psalm 22:3

Read: Exodus 15:9-11, 

9 The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.10 Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them: they sank as lead in the mighty waters.11 Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?

MESSAGE!

Holiness is an intrinsic part of God’s nature; it is His very essence. Everything about Him is wrapped up in holiness. His love, mercy, power, justice, glory and all of His character reflect His holiness. Every action of God is designed to perpetuate His holiness. When He exhibits love, it is borne out of His holiness. If He is angry, it is because of His holiness. When He judges sin, it is out of His holiness. In His dealings with all His creatures, whether in Heaven, on earth or beneath the earth, one theme rings out: holiness. No wonder the seraphs in His presence keep repeating “Holy Holy, Holy”. Isaiah 6:3 says this about them:

“And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.”

Prayer Point

Father, let Your nature of holiness flow seamlessly through me every second from today.

Bible in one year: Psalm 69-72, Hebrews 8

Word For Today: The God of Purpose

Memorise: In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: Ephesians 1:11

Read: Ephesians 1:9-12, 

9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.

Word For Today: OVERCOMING BY PRAYER

Memorise: And when he was at the place, he said unto them, pray that ye enter not into temptation. Luke 22:40

Read: Luke 22:39-41, 

39 And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him.40 And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed.

MESSAGE!

The moment you gave your life to Jesus Christ, a battle line was drawn between you and the kingdom of darkness. Unhappy that he has lost you to God’s kingdom, Satan’s main goal is to secure your return to his kingdom. One major tool he tries to use in accomplishing this mission is temptation. The devil and his agents will bring temptations your way to make you to do things that would break your relationship with God. This is where prayer comes in. prayer is one veritable tool that prevents you from falling into Satan’s traps. This is why Jesus urged His disciples at the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. Luke 22:40 says:

“And when he was at the place, he said unto them, pray that ye enter not into temptation.”

When you pray, the strength to overcome temptations is released to you. A Christian who fails to pray will sooner or later become a victim of the tempter. The extent to which you will overcome temptations is determined by how robust your prayer life is. If you have been raising and falling so often, check your prayer life and the way you study God’s word. If you can improve on both, you will experience more stability in your faith.

One of the modus operandi of Satan is to show you dazzling sights that could tempt you to follow him. In other words, he presents an object of temptation in a bright and attractive way; repainting an evil thing in brilliant and attractive colours. For instance, a prostitute is labelled a commercial sex worker, in order to support the excuse that he or she is simply trying to earn a living, whereas the essence of prostitution is fornication and adultery. In tempting people, the devil and his agents make sin look attractive and inviting, almost with an air of irresistibility. Prayer deadens these illusions by painting sin in its real colours. Every time you pray over an object of temptation, it becomes less inviting and less attractive. As you pray, the desire to sin is brought under subjection. Through prayer, we obtain grace to walk in the reality of the truth that our flesh has been crucified (Galatians 5:24). Prayer strengthens our spirit man and keeps the flesh where it belongs: crucified and dead on the cross of Calvary (Romans 6:6). It connects your spirit with the Holy Spirit and separates you from the devil, by moving your focus towards Heaven and away from the allure of the world. How prayerful are you? No believer in Christ can triumph without using the weapon of prayer. 

Prayer Point

Father, please give me the grace to pray like Jesus prayed while on earth.

Bible in one year: Psalm 57-63, Hebrews 6:13-7:10

Word For Today: BEWARE OF MANIPULATORS

 

Proverbs 22:3 A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished...

A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold...The rich and poor meet together: the Lord is the maker of them all.A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.By humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, and honour, and life.Thorns and snares are in the way of the froward: he that doth keep his soul shall be far from them.Proverbs 22:1-5

When you are popular and celebrated on account of your position or service in the kingdom of God, beware and avoid every temptation to use what you have received against the will of God. If you are not careful, you may fall into a trap and become another example, like the 250 princes who were destroyed in Numbers 16. That shall not be your portion in Jesus’ Name! However, you need to know that if you are in a position of power or you are very famous and highly respected by people, you will be a target of manipulators. If you are not extremely careful, you will fall into traps you never thought could ensnare you. After Korah, Dathan and Abiram orchestrated an evil plan and they wanted the children of Israel to buy into it, who did they contact? They deliberately chose the most popular 250 princes in the assembly of God’s people and carefully sold the idea to them (Numbers 16:2). Once that was done, convincing the people under these princes was a walk in the park.

Believe it or not, just as these princes were tempted, you too will be tempted. People who have goods and services for sale will come to you because they want to reach yourmembers or those under your sphere of influence. Some of these may be beneficial to your people and some may not. Some people may even ask you to come and support a cause that is contrary to scriptures. Be very careful! Be watchful and prayerful. When they come to make such proposals, place them side-by-side with the word. Any proposition that violates the word of God must be rejected without fear or favour. Those borderline issues which are not out-rightly wrong or sinful should be presented to God, asking for His direction. Never allow yourself to be used by manipulators! If you lead the people under you astray, not only will their blood be upon your head, you may lose your integrity, position, power and honour. Also, carefully watch out for sycophants who will sing your praise so high that you will not know when they begin to lead you astray. Sycophants are “loyal” to you for very wrong reasons – reasons they may never tell you. They will always want you to see what they do, because they do their service to impress the leader and not God. Ask God to weed off from you anyone who appears close to you but want to mislead you.

 

Action Point

Pray that God will weed off sycophants and those with a wrong motive hanging around leaders in the Body of Christ, your family, place of work and the government.

 Bible in one year: Leviticus 13:45-14:32; 1^st Corinthians 9:8-23

Reference: Open Heavens Devotional with Pastor E.A. Adeboye

Word For Today: Enduring Hardship

Read: Matthew 5:10-12 - Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven...

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Matthew 5:11

The devil knows the glorious tomorrow that awaits every believer in Christ when they cross the finish line of the Christian race. This is why he fights tooth and nail to derail us from reaching our goal. He was a part of the heavenly bliss that will be our reward, but he lost his place due to evil thoughts (Isaiah 14:12-15). He does not want us to taste what he lost; hence he works through wiles to bring us down (Ephesians 6:11). One of the wiles that Satan uses in making believers in Christ abandon the Christian race is hardship. Some people have pulled out of heaven’s marathon before getting to the finish line, due to their inability to endure hardship. Our Lord Jesus Christ described such people in Mark 4:17

“And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word’s sake, immediately they are offended.”

The expectations you had when you entered the Christian faith matter a lot. The Christian faith is not a bed of roses. The way of the cross that leads to Heaven is not a path laden with gold and easy to take. If anyone tells you that once you believe in Jesus, all your problems will disappear and everything will always go well, you are being deceived. The day you signed up as a believer in Christ, the die was cast and the battle line was drawn between you and the kingdom of darkness. From that day, you become a sworn enemy of the forces of darkness. They will surely attack you and try to make you feel miserable.

You are expected to endure hardness as a good soldier of Christ (2^nd Timothy 2:3). The inability to endure difficult and trying times makes one a bad soldier of the cross. Even when God blesses you, He still leaves room for you to be persecuted, tried and ridiculed. Your faith in Christ may be tested through lack, hunger, unanswered prayers, false accusations, ill health, and so on. Jesus in our Bible reading taught that if you can take persecution, being reviled by men and false accusation in good faith, you are blessed and on the path to Heaven. On the other hand, if you easily get offended by these, if nothing is done to correct your attitude, you may become derailed from the faith. Are you offended in Christ? Towards the end of his stay on earth, John the Baptist began to doubt if the same Person he had declared to be the Son of God was the true Messiah (Matthew 11:2-6). In His reply to John’s questions, the Lord told him not to be offended in Him. It is a good thing to suffer persecution for your faith in Christ. Never get to the point of being offended in Him.

Prayer Point

Father, let patience have its perfect work in my life, so that I will be wanting in nothing.

Bible in one year: Leviticus 6:8-7:38, 1^st Corinthians 5:1-6:11

Reference: from open Heavens daily with Pastor E.A. Adeboye

Word For Today: The Beginning of Beginnings

Read: John 1:1-3, 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God...

I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. Revelation 1:8

The Almighty God is so great, mighty, powerful, glorious and all-knowing that He is unlimited, unlike mortal men. He has access to the past, present and future of every event. Jesus in Revelation 1:8 declared:

“I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.”

The word “Alpha” in this declaration refers to the beginning of beginnings. When everything began, it was in His presence. John 1:2 says the Word was in the beginning with God. He was there when everything was formed, and as a result, He can trace the historical links of everything to where it all started. He is still in control of the past, so He can interfere with it in order to give you a better tomorrow. He knows exactly how things will turn out; hence it is best to always stick with His decisions. Before He gives counsel on any matter, He looks at the situation from the angles of the past, present and future, within the context of His purpose of your life. This is why those who factor His decisions into their lives are wise (Proverbs 3:5-7). Even if something goes wrong with such a decision down the line, because He is involved, and all the power and resources available in the universe belong to Him, He will tinker with things and get them to work in your favour (Romans 8:28). How often do you let Him into your decisions?

In the sphere of human existence, today is a product of yesterday. If you are a professional today, it is because you spent time being trained in school yesterday. If you have graduated from the university with a first-class honours degree, it is because you invested quality time into studying. If you are doing mental jobs as a cleaner or messenger, it is most likely because of your lack of access to an education or because you did not invest enough time in schooling. If you are suffering today, it is most likely as a result of what you did or did not do in the past. This is why you should be very careful with what you do today. Also, have tomorrow in view before taking that decision today. Thirdly, get connected with the only One who can go into your past to help your present. Do you know the Alpha and Omega? Are you connected with the Beginning of beginnings?

Prayer point

Father, go into my past and correct any error working against me today, and make my tomorrow great

Bible in one year: Leviticus 4:13-6:7, 1^st Corinthians 4 

Reference: Open Heavens daily with Pastor E.A. Adeboye

Word For Today: WATCH FOR THE SIGNS

OPEN HEAVENS Devotional for Wednesday 11th September 2013.

WATCH FOR THE SIGNS

Memorise: Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. James 2:18

Read: James 2:14-17
What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? James 2:14

If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, James 2:15

And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? James 2:16

Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. James 2:17

Bible in one year: John 1-3
 

Message

Elijah in 1 Kings 18:41-44 brought an end to a situation of famine that had plagued the land for three and a half years. We can learn from the process he went through in order to bring about the manifestation of change in this situation of drought. In addition to hearing God, declaring what He had said and intense prayer, the man of God also added some other action. He asked his servant to keep going back to check the skyline for signs of rain. James 2:14-17 says the faith that fails to be backed up by works is a dead faith. One lesson here underscores the need to be spiritually alert while praying. Why? If you watch and pray and you are spiritually sensitive, you will see the signs in the spiritual skyline that will tell you that your prayer has been answered. Sometimes, such signs may appear quite insignificant or almost unnoticeable, yet, if you are sensitive enough, it will not pass you by. When you watch and pray, you will not pray blind prayers any more. When you pray, do you watch out for signs of answer to your prayer?

On the other hand, there is need for works to give life to your faith. Hebrews 11:6 says God rewards those who diligently seek Him. Do you seek Him diligently? Yes the tide is turning for your good but you’ve got to act and go beyond prayer. If you need a job, you need to write and forward your applications to organisations and follow them up, asking whether they received your applications, the time for tests and interviews etc. As a student, if you want to come out in flying colours, you must study. In 1964, my professor told me you have to go over a given text 10 times if you truly want it to stick in your memory. If you want to reach the top, acquire a skill. Whatever you are doing, be very good at it. If you are a tailor, carpenter or fisherman, be the best in that field. God is looking for diligent, hardworking and skilled people that He will prosper. One of my friends introduced his brother to me as a tailor who just qualified and requested that I patronise him. I gave him some material to sew a pair of trousers and he sewed something else. I told my friend that his brother is a barber and not a tailor. Be diligent from today!

ACTION POINT

Some signs may be a flash of less than a minute, ask God for grace not to lose divine messages.