HE DELIGHTS IN THE PROSPERITY OF HIS CHILDREN

MEMORY VERSE: Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the LORD be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant. Psalm 35:27

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Exodus 19-22

Matthew 19:24 says: “And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” 1 Timothy 6:10 says: “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” Many read Matthew 19:24 and 1 Timothy 6:10 and concluded that riches is bad for Christians. Some actually believe that no rich man will enter heaven. As such, they hate money and do everything possible to ensure that they do not become rich. Jesus did not say riches will take you to hell neither did He say that poverty will take you to heaven. The only condition to get to heaven is be born again (John 3:3-5).

The Bible teaches that God delights in the prosperity of His servants (See Psalm 35:27).  Why would God delight in the “prosperity” of His servants if wealth/prosperity is bad – if prosperity will take them to hell? God wants you to prosper. Abraham, a man described in James 2:23 as the Friend of God, was a rich man. Abraham’s servant said, “And the LORD hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses (Genesis 24:35).” David, a man God described as a man after His own heart (Acts 13:22), gave close to a billion dollars towards the building of the temple (1 Chronicles 29:1-30). Bible scholars valued the gold and silver he gave to the tune of $867.5 million. After Job passed the test, God greatly prospered him. God wants His children to prosper and as such, He gives them the power to get wealth ( See Deuteronomy 8:18). We have established that God wants you to prosper; however, there is a caveat to it. If you want divine prosperity you must live holy. Isaiah 1:19 says: “If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:” You must be a giver. Proverbs 11:25 says: “The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.” You must be diligent. Proverbs 12:24 says: “The hand of the diligent shall bear rule: but the slothful shall be under tribute.” Lastly, you must not be a lover of pleasure. Proverbs 21:17 says: “He that loveth pleasure shall be a poor man: he that loveth wine and oil shall not be rich.” Many of us are not rich simply because we love pleasure – flashy things.

CONFESSION: I prophesy that this year will be my best year so far.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world.

AND YE SHALL BE THE CHILDREN OF THE HIGHEST

MEMORY VERSE: But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Luke 6:35

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Colossians 1-2

READ: Luke 6:31-35

As a married woman, it is easy to submit to a man who celebrates you. It is easy to submit to a man who puts you first. In other words, it is easy to submit (to one’s husband) when one's needs are being met and one is happy. As a brother, it is easy to love a woman who respects you. Who wouldn’t love a woman who is an epitome of a virtuous woman (Proverb 31)? Who wouldn’t love a woman like Sarah, the Great Shunamite woman, Rebekah, or Abigail? Who wouldn’t love a young pious sister like Mary?

It is easy to obey God’s commandment (especially when it relates to marriage and relationship ) when one feels loved and appreciated. As a sister, it is easy to submit to a man who loves and respects you. Also as a brother, it is easy to love a woman who is submissive and humble. According to Luke 6:31-35, nothing differentiates you from a pagan if you treat people as they treat you. You, my brother or sister, have not done anything spectacular when you love a woman who submits to you or submit to a man who loves you. Even pagans and atheist do that. A woman who has never walked through the doors of a church before in her life will submit to her husband (without him asking for it) if he loves and respects her. Also an atheist man will love his wife if she is submissive and humble.

Luke 6:35 says, “But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.” Christ demonstrated how to be a true child of God by dying for us while we were yet sinner. Romans 5:8 says, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” While we were yet hopeless and worthless sinners, Christ died for us. He demonstrated how to be a godly husband by dying for us, while we were yet to submit to Him. This is Christ's expectation of every man. Ephesians 5:25 says, “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it” The best time to show one’s love to his wife is not when she is humble and submissive. It is when she is most obnoxious. The best time to submit to one’s husband is not when he provides money. It is when you are most offended by something he said or did. This is how the children of the Most High should behave. However, it is not something anyone can do by will power. The same thing applies to loving people who are either unlovable or obnoxious or unrepentant. Loving such people is only possible with the help of the Holy Spirit. Zechariah 4:6 says, “Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.” It is the Holy Spirit that gives one the ability to love the unlovable i.e. become the sons and daughters of God.

PRAYER: Father, please help me to love those who are unlovable.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

PRAYING WITH YOUR CHILDREN

MEMORY VERSE: and God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of the God called to Hagar out of heaven and said unto her, what aileth thee, Hagar? Fear not; for God hath the voice of the lad where he is, Genesis 21:17

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deut 6, Ps 89, Isa 34, Rev 4

BIBLE STUDIES: Genesis 21:14-22

When it comes to spiritual activities like praying and fasting, many parents don’t engage their children because they believe they are too small. As parents and adults, please do not despise little children especially when it comes to spiritual matters. They may be very little but Jesus does not play with their prayer requests. Matthew 18:10 says take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, that in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. If you are thinking a child is too small to hear from God, you are making a big mistake. This is why I weep for parents whose children miss Sunday school, they doing those children a great disfavor.

There are several reasons why you need to start engaging your little children in spiritual activities. There are several reasons why it pays to ask them to agree with you when you are seeking the face of God on an issue. Matthew 5:8 says blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. In other words to see God in action in your situation, you must possess a pure heart. To always get a quick response every time you pray to God, you need to be pure in heart. To improve your spiritual signal so you that you can hear God every time He speaks, you need a clean heart or a pure heart. What is a pure heart? A pure heart is a heart that is devoid of bitterness, unforgiveness, jealousy, negative thoughts e.t.c. Most children are in possession of such heart because they are innocent. They don’t keep grudges, they are not jealous, they hate no one, they judge no one, their heart is empty of malice e.t.c. Because they are in possession of such heart, their spiritual signals are very good and every time they call on God He listens.

We see in our bible studies that it was the cry of Ishmael (the young son of Hagar) that caught the attention of God. God could not stand the cry of this young boy; He had to urgently send an angel to sort Hagar out. Another reason why your children needs to be your prayer partner is that once in a while, worries of life and other emotions make it difficult to hear when God is speaking. During this period when your faith is weak, God speaks through the mouth of these little children. If you do not make them your prayer partners, God speaking through them to you might be difficult.

ACTION POINTS: Give your children the opportunity to lead prayer during devotions. Ask for their inputs during bible studies.

NO CHARACTER, NO FUTURE

MEMORY VERSE: For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Jeremiah 29:11

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Num 1, Ps 35, Eccl 11, Titus 3

God has good plans for your future. According to Psalm 37:37, He wants you to have a future of peace. Not only that, He plans to give you an expected end, Jeremiah 29:11. Do you know that you will not die young? Psalm 118:17 says I shall not die, but live and declare the works of the Lord. Do you know that it will be well with you? Isaiah 3:10 says say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings. Your present circumstances may not bear resemblance of your proposed future but don’t worry, all is well. Job 8:7 says though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase.

Good character is required to fulfill God’s plan and purpose for your life. There are many who work tirelessly to get to the ‘top’, only to come crashing back after a while due to lack of character. There are many women who have lost their places has a result of lack of character. Queen Vashti was replaced; the remains of Jezebel were not found because dogs ate her up; Michal lost her place in the palace. There are many mighty prophets to be who became a leper as a result of lack of character. This was the case of Gehazi, he was on his way to become one of the greatest prophets in Israel. The heavens had planned to give him double portion of the spirit of Elisha but because of a little lie and greed, instead of been anointed he became sick; instead of a blessing he received a curse. The man who the whole nation was meant to look up to began to live in the jungle alone.

Lack of integrity, lie telling, inconsistency in character, lack of patience, non- payment of tithes e.t.c reveals lack of character. You may be wondering how non- payment of tithes reveals lack of character. According to Malachi 3:8, those who do not pay their tithes are robbing God. Now tell me a fellow who robs God, who can he not rob? Lack of character could also be not knowing how to talk. A lot of people have lost great opportunities because they do not know how to talk. Many of them talk rudely to everyone one even their parents. Let me tell you a fact, a child who talks rudely to his or her parents is playing with fire! I know you will not be cursed because you will not talk rudely to your parents. The problem with not knowing how to talk is that once you say it , it is the end. You cannot take it back again. People can forgive but they will never forget what you have said.

PRAYER POINT: Father, pleased do not let lack of character rob me of my glorious future.

God's Favorite

Matthew 19:14 - But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

God loves little children.They are His favorite . He loves having them around Him no wonder the book of Matthew 18:3 says only little children will be permitted in heaven .Mark 10:15 establishes that to even stand a chance , one must take the kingdom of heaven as a child. Anyone who hates children can never be friends with God i can assure you of that.

Why does He love them so much ? Because they are pure in heart. Little children never holds grudges or keep malice.They are amazing to watch when they play. This minute they are fighting the next minute they are sharing sweets or candies.1 Corinthians 14:20 says Brethren, be not children in understanding: but in malice be children.

Another reason is they are mild and humble.One thing you will not find is a child refusing to play with another child because of class or looking down on fellow kids. Little children are free of prejudice .Only Adults have people that are below their class and as such they can not relate to them . Also little children are full of faith.They dream a lot ,they want to be astronauts, Presidents , banker , doctors e.t.c .They do not see impossibilities and as such God is able to carry them to any heights.

Another reason is they are teachable and are not obstinate.

Are you a child or an adult? are you teachable ? can the Lord still carry you or you are too big to be carried.

PRAYER POINT: Father help me to be teachable, mild, humble, and free from prejudice and obstinacy.