THY WILL BE DONE

MEMORY VERSE: Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Matthew 6:10

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 119:105-120, Proverbs 31:10, 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8

The Lord’s Prayer, in Matthew 6: 9-13, is not something to be parroted or repeated after praying. Jesus said, “After this manner therefore pray ye” (Matthew 6:9). Jesus did not ask His disciples to repeat the Lord’s Prayer –words for words – every time they prayed. The Lord’s Prayer is just a pattern of prayer - a pattern to follow when praying. You will never find a place in the scripture where the disciples of Jesus recited the Lord’s Prayer – words for words, but we see them employing the pattern.

In our daily devotional titled: ‘How to ask according to God’s will,’ I spoke about the importance of asking according to God’s will. Today, i want to encourage you to pray for the will of God to be done in your life, in that marriage, business, relationship, place of work, ministry, election , your son’s marriage, your daughter’s marriage, over that illness, court case, challenges you are facing, etc. Matthew 6:10 says this: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” You see, after the fall of man, man became selfish. The root cause of hunger, war, election rigging, murder, crimes and other bad things happening all-round can be traced to man’s selfishness. The will of some sisters in marriage is to marry a tall handsome black man who works in Oil Company. Others want to marry a readymade man- rich, successful and extremely handsome. The will of some brothers in marriage is to marry the daughter of a billionaire or someone famous. All these are selfish wills. When all we think of is ourselves not the will of God, we run into trouble, chaos, unhappiness and disappointment. Anytime you say, “Your will be done,” you are saying, “any time my will conflicts with Your will, let Your will take charge.” Friend, i want you to know that God’s will is the best. Most of us have let the devil make us afraid of God’s will. The devil has lied to us that the will of God means suffering. It means denial. It means i am going to have to give up things up. It means a boring life that will be full of challenges. Friend, God’s will is not dull. Look at the bright stars, the moon, the sun, the beautiful landscapes, the hills, mountains, seas, nature in generally, it all came about as a result of God’s will. Do you know these flowers – Rose, Bird of paradise, Calla Lily, Magnolia, Water lilies, Tulips , to mention a few, all came about as a result of God’s will? God’s will is bright! There are few truths i want you to bear in mind as you pray for His will to be done in your life. Firstly, God loves you more than you love yourself. Secondly, God understands you better than you understand yourself. Thirdly, God wants only the best for you. Even when God’s will takes you through fire, know for sure that it is the best route for you. ‘God’s will’ will give you an expected end (Jeremiah 29:11).

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: In my whole life, i have never met a single person who allowed the will of God in his or her life, especially in the area marriage and career, who regretted it. Also, i am yet to meet anyone who rejected the will of God for his or her life, especially in the area of marriage, who did not regret it.

PRAYER POINT: Father, please let Your will be done in my life today.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

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HOW TO ASK ACCORDING TO GOD’S WILL

MEMORY VERSE: And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: 1 John 5:14

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 119:89-104, Proverbs 31:9, 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8 

If you want God to answer your prayers, there are certain conditions you must meet. One of them is you must ask according to His will. 1 John 5:14 says this: “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:” One of the reasons why God does not respond to some of the prayers offered today is because it is not according to His will. Sister, it is not in God’s will that your mother-in-law should die. God is not a murderer! Therefore, if you are praying that God should kill her, i can assure you that God will not answer that prayer. The will of God for her is to accept Jesus Christ as her personal Lord and Savoir - if she is yet to do so and you two live in peace. Ezekiel 18:32 says this: “For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.” It is also not in God’s will that something terrible should happen to that traffic warden who gave you a parking ticket. The traffic warden was doing his job. If you had parked properly, you would not have been served with a parking fine. Moreover, God will not kill him or her for you because He is not a traffic warden killer! 

How does one ask according to God’s will? Firstly, pray in tongues. Paul said, “For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful” (1 Corinthians 14:14). You see, when it comes to prayer, everyone one of us has an infirmity. The infirmity/weakness is “we know not what we should pray for as we ought” (Romans 8:26-27). How does the Spirit of God help us to overcome this infirmity? He takes over and makes intercession through us, praying according to the will of God. Therefore, when you pray in tongues, it is not you praying but the spirit of God making intercession through you. The next time you wake up in the middle of the night with a burden to pray and you do not know what to pray for, just start praying in tongues. One of the advantages of praying in tongues is that you can do it anywhere - whilst driving your children home, whilst having picnic with your friend, whilst waiting in a queue, in a courtroom, exam room, bathroom, just name it. You do not even need to close your eyes when praying in tongues. Another advantage of praying in tongues is that no one knows what you are praying about; even the demons do not know it. 

Secondly, pray in accordance with God’s word. The only place where you will find God’s will is inside His word i.e. the bible. The great revelation of the will of God is the Word of God. Moreover, the Word of God is packed from the beginning to end with divine promises. These promises of God are the will of God. This is how to pray in accordance with the word of God. When you find a promise that relates to your situation and meets your need, that promise is God’s will for you.  God never promised anything that was not His will; anything else would be inconsistent. Suppose a particular challenge keeps re-occurring. Nahum 1:9 says this: “What do ye imagine against the LORD? he will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time.” You go to God and say, “Father, Your word says 'affliction shall not rise up the second time,' please let this challenge never re-occurred again.” As you pray earnestly and in tongues, God will see to it that the challenge never re-occurs again.   

HINT: What you are doing when you pray in accordance with the scripture is you are saying to God “do as You have said” 

NOTE: One of the greatest hindrances to prayer is unforgiveness. Forgive first before going to God with your requests.  

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus. 

Dangerous desires

Friday 17 August                                Bible in on year : 2 Kings 11-14

Memorise: And he gave them their request ;but sent leanness into their soul. Psalms 106:15

Read: Numbers 11:31-35

Some believers are so much in a hurry that they cannot wait on God for anything. If God expects you to wait, then you have nothing else to do but wait. In fulfilling His promises, God expects you to wait on Him.The Christian race is a marathon where patience is a key component.God rewards the patient. He also rewards the impatient. When you are impatient with God concerning a blessing,by the time He gives you the blessing prematurely , it will either cause you shame for the rest of your life or may even kill you. Psalms 106:15 says God gave Israelite their requests but added leanness to their souls. Why? While in the wilderness, God gave them a mono-food product- manna but they soon got tired of it and began to lust for meat. At some point , in virtually all the families, after complaining so bitterly,they sat by the front door weeping because they did not have meat to eat. In a wilderness situation, you are under trial and therefore you are not the one to dictate what you will go through but God.In Matthew 4:1-11, our Lord Jesus Christ also went through a wilderness situation. In His case , He fasted throughout. But because the Isrealites wanted to dictate to God how they should undergo their trial, God gave them flesh. As they put it in their mouths , the Lord sent a plague which destroyed many of them.

Self-will is a destroyer. Many people have severely hurt themselves as a result of their personal desires. If you find it difficult to submit your tastes, desires and habits to God, you will continue to hurt yourself. Some sisters so pressed the Lord for a particular brother as a husband to the point that the same God who had said "No" eventually said "Yes". How such sisters would have rejoiced and bragged about their accomplishment , not knowing that they had just signed up for their own unhappiness. Sometimes when God gives you your heart desires contrary to His will, everything may appear right but your soul will be plagued with leanness. A lean soul is on its way to destruction. The voice of God is cut off from the fellow and he or she will walk about as one who does not know where he or she is going.Check your desires!

PRAYER POINT: Father, every request I make or desire i have ,that can bring your judgment up on me,please do not grant such request and take such desires away from my heart.
Excerpts from Open Heavens by Pastor E.A Adeboye