JUST BELIEVE

MEMORY VERSE: Jesus said unto him, if thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth, Mark 9:23

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deut 15, Ps 102, Isa 42, Rev 12

The key to receiving anything from God is faith. Almost everyone who received a miracle from Jesus got it by faith. Jesus would ask ‘do you believe that I am able to do this’? If they said yes, He would say ‘according to your faith be it unto you’. The same Jesus that raised Lazarus from the dead went to His home town and could not do much because of their unbelief, Mark 6:4-6. Without faith you cannot please God, Hebrew 11:6. James1:6-7 says let not that man (a man without faith) think he shall receive any thing of the Lord. Your faith activates the power of God. Your faith makes the power of God very potent in that circumstances or situations or matter.

After reading messages like this, this first thing that comes to the mind of many is how can I get faith? Many wonder how come some people have faith and others don’t. I want you know that faith is a gift of God. Ephesians 2:8 says for by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves. You do not work to get faith, faith is God’s gift. You also need to understand that every believer has this gift. As far as you have giving your life to Christ, you already have faith in you. Romans 12:3b says but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith in others words every believer has been given a measure of faith. Beloved you have all it takes inside you to tell a mountain to move and go yonder and the mountain has no choice than to obey.
God gets everyone started off the same way. He does not give one person more faith than He gives another. He gives to every man the measure of faith. You may be wondering how come some people have more faith than others. Well the measure of faith can be increased. 2 Thessalonians 1:3 talks about faith growing exceedingly. You are the one who increases your faith not God, but God provides the means whereby your faith can be increased. You can increase your faith by doing two things: 1) feeding it on the Word of God and 2) exercising it or putting it into practice in everyday living. Romans 10:17 says faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. The more of God’s word you feed on the more faith you will have but remember that you need to exercise your faith because if you don’t, your faith muscles will be flabby. They won’t be able to do much spiritually when it comes to moving mountains in your life.

ACTION POINT: Start from where you are and begin to grow your faith

PONDER ON: It is God’s responsibility to give you faith but it your responsibility to grow it.

OVERCOMING EVIL WITH GOOD

MEMORY VERSE: be not overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good, Romans 12:21.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deut 13-14, Ps 99-101, Isa 41, Rev 11

James 2:26 says for as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. Our works, actions, conducts etc must reflect Christ. Acts 10:38 says Jesus Christ went around doing good. A fellow who is not doing good works is not Christ like i.e. Christians. We are not worthy of been called a Christian if we only show kindness to those who show kindness to us. According to Matthew 5:43-48, if we only love those who love us then we are like the wicked too because wicked people only love those who love them. If we only greet those who greet us then we are no different from pagans because pagans too greet only those who greet them. As believers, Christ expects us to love everyone even our enemies; He expects us to be good to everyone even our enemies; He expects us to greet everyone even our enemies. He expects us to greet people who don’t even greet us.

The only way to overcome evil is by doing good. Don’t repay evil with evil because the Lord says vengeance is mine; I will repay, Romans 12:19. Don’t say heaven helps those who help themselves and go and take revenge. First of all ‘heaven helps those who themselves’ is not biblical. You will never find this quotation in the bible; it is from the pit of hell. Secondly when you repay evil with evil, you are evil.1 John 3:7 says little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. Another reason why you must not return evil for evil is that evil begets evil. This leads to circle of violence, you hurt me and Il hurt you and before you know it escalates into something else.

When you repay good with evil, the Lord disarms your enemy. When you repay good with evil, the Lord turns evil into good. A brother was sharing his testimony of how the Lord used him to bring an evil uncle to Christ. This evil uncle belonged to a satanic secret society. This evil man was responsible for the death of his senior brother (brother’s dad). He did that with the intention of possessing all the properties – houses, lands e.t.c that belongs to his senior brother. The whole family hated this uncle but this brother drew close to him and began to witness to him. Later the uncle gave his life to Christ, confessed and forsook his evil ways. He apologized and returned all he had taken. This ex-evil uncle could have killed more people but the love this brother shew to him changed him.

PRAYER POINT: Father, please give me the grace to repay good for evil.

LISTENING HUSBANDS HAVE AN ADVANTAGE

MEMORY VERSE: but God said to Abraham, ‘do not let it be displeasing in your sight because of the lad or because of your bondwoman. Whatever Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice; for in Isaac your seed shall be called, Genesis 21:12

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deut 12, Ps 97-98, Isa 40, Rev 10

BIBLE STUDIES: Genesis 21:8-13

The role of the leader is to serve the people not to boss them or lord over them. The role of the head is to serve the body. While every other part of the body is sleeping, the brain is busy working just to ensure that all is well with the body. The greatest leader the world ever knows was Jesus; He spent his entire life serving the poor and washing the feet of his disciples. The difference between a dictator and a leader is that leaders serve while dictators don’t. Mark 9:35 says and he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, if any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.

As a husband you are the head of the family. Ephesians 5:23 says for the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the savior of the church. The role of the husband is to serve not boss over his wife. The role of the wife is to submit to her husband, Ephesians 5:22. Good leaders listen to their subordinates, but tyrants or dictators don’t. There is nothing wrong in a husband listening to his wife’s wise and godly counsels. Whether you believe it or not women are more intuitive than man, listening to their wise and godly counsels has its advantages.

Pontius Pilate could have been guilty of crucifying Jesus if not for the wise and godly counsel of his wife. She said to him ‘have nothing to do with that just Man, for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of Him (Matthew 27:19).’ Immediately Pilate heard that he washed his hands off the case of Jesus. The husband of the great woman of Shunem would have died without a child if not for the wise and godly counsel of his wife. She told the husband that they needed to build a house for the man of God and that one agreed (2 Kings 4:8-13). A year later he became a father. In Genesis 21:8-13, Sarah had an insight on a personal family matter and Abram felt that she was wrong. God told Abraham listen to the voice of his wife. Arrogant husbands who refuse to listen to their wives because they think they know it all will fall flat on their face.

ACTION POINT: Listen to wise and godly counsel of your wife.

THE NEED FOR VISION

MEMORY VERSE: where there is no vision, the people perish; but he that keepeth the law, happy is he, Proverbs 29:18

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deut 11, Ps 95-96, Isa 39, Rev 9

The first question is what is vision? Vision is simply seeing things as God sees them or seeing things through the eyes of God. Hebrew 4:13 says neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do or whom we must give a word of explanation. Psalm 139:4 says for there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether in other words before is word in on my tongue, He knows all about it. Nothing is hidden before God, when you see things as God sees them nothing will be hidden from you.

Proverbs 29:18 says where there is no vision, the people perish; but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.

The bible says ‘where there is no vision’, this could be anywhere. It could be the church, an organization, a government parastatals, a community, a family, a nation just name it. Anywhere in the world and I repeat anywhere in the whole world where people do not see things the way God sees them, death (financial, spiritual, material, physical, mental) is inevitable. How does God see divorce? Malachi 2:16 says for the Lord, the God of Israel ,saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the Lord of hosts; therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously. 1 Corinthians 7:10 says and unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, let not the wife depart from her husband. God hates divorce.

A man without a vision is a man without a future. How does an ordinary man become extraordinary? Vision. How did a young slave boy in Egypt become the father to Pharaoh (Genesis 45:8)? Vision. Vision is power. A fellow without vision is the equivalent of a blind man. Thank God for vision impaired technology but the truth is this if you put a blind fellow on a race track with a fellow with eyes sight, the fellow with eyes sight will obviously get to the finish line before the blind fellow. To attain God’s vision for your life in His own time, you need vision.

PRAYER POINT:Father, please help me to see things as you see them.

INTERCEDING FOR THE ‘HEAD’

MEMORY VERSE: When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn, Proverbs 29:2.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deut 9, Ps 92-93, Isa 37, Rev 7

The most important part of the body is the head. The head is responsible for vision. Proverbs 29:18 says where there is no vision the people perish. The head is responsible for hearing. Romans 10:17 says faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Romans 14:23c says whatever that is not of faith is sin. The head is responsible for making decisions. To make wise decisions, wisdom is required. The head is responsible for intercession. Matthew 7:8 says for everyone that asketh recieveth. The reason why God created the head is to serve the body.
The body greatly depends on the head for a lot of things. If the head succeeds, the body will succeed but if the head fails, the body will fail. If the head makes a mistake, the body will pay dearly for it. This is why we need to always intercede for our ‘heads’- Pastors, Bishops, Teachers, Governors, Presidents, Heads of States, General Superintendent or Overseas e.t.c. The enemy knows the importance of the head to the body and he understands that once the body is separated from the head, the body will die. Anytime he wants to destroy a fellow, he encourages the fellow to rebel against his head i.e. leader. When he wanted to destroy Judas Iscariot, he encouraged him to rebel and betray his master –Jesus; we all know the end of Judas. This is why we need to ensure that we are not part of any rebellion or we don’t make friends with rebels.
There is a real need to intercede for world leaders today. The problem of recession all over the world is a result of our heads - finance ministers, chancellors, specialist e.t.c. getting it wrong. The only way out of recession is just to pray for them so that they will get it right. Without the fear of the Lord in their hearts, getting it right will be impossible. Psalm 111:10 says the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Increase in crimes, high rates of unemployment, corruptions e.t.c. are all end products of wrong decisions made by our heads. We need to pray for the salvation of our heads. Many of us would rather curse them than pray for them. The truth is this, if they are saved we will all enjoy. Proverbs 29:2 says when the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.
PRAYER POINT: Father, please have mercy and save the souls of world leaders.

KEEP THE ROAD CLEAR PT2

MEMORY VERSE: Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear, Isaiah 59:1-2

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deut 8, Ps 91, Isa 36, Rev 6

One thing I have learnt in the few years I have spent on earth is that challenges don’t give notice. They come at unexpected times, this minute all is well the next minute it is not. A prime example is found in 2 kings 4:18-2, the son of the Shunem woman was in high spirit in the morning, running all around the house. By noon he began to complain of headache and before you know it the boy passed away. I pray this will never be your portion in Jesus name. Many a times God reveal things to us before it happens but once in a while he might decide to not reveal them. The reason been that He is sovereign, not only that so that we don’t get too complacent. When the son of the Shunem woman died, the Lord decided not to tell Elisha anything. That was why Elisha said the Lord had hid these things from me, 2 Kings 4:27. The Lord is not a talkative, He is God and He is not obliged to reveal anything to anyone but when He does please don’t take it for granted.

When you look at fire stations, they do not permit cars around their offices because emergency might occur. The last thing they want is cars blocking the entrances when called to an emergency. The same thing applies to us. The path between us and God needs to be clear at all times. Psalm 66:18 says if I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me. We need to keep ourselves pure at all times. The only thing that can hinder God from hearing us when we cry to him is sin. Isaiah 59:1-2 says behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.

Just a week ago a sister called her dad only to be told that her dad was lying on unconscious on the floor. Immediately she asked the lady that picked up the phone to put the phone in the dad’s ear and began to pray for him. Within 5 minutes this man regained consciousness. The question is what if this sister had been gossiping with her friends before she called that day what would have happened? What if there someone she was not greeting, do you think the Lord will have heard cry? On Monday I was on my way to church when I met an elderly man and he began to share the bible with me. From nowhere a man came and started shouting at us. The next minute he took a pen knife and tried to stab me on the neck. I don’t how I did it but I somehow dodged and this man ran into the railing behind me. He tried again and he fell, later he left and walked back to the car. I have never met this man before in my life, I didn’t say a word to me yet he attacked me. Thank God for the Holy Spirit. The question is what if I was on my back from where I went to commit fornication? By now I would be history.

KEY POINT: Keep the road between you and God clear because you don’t know what is going to happen in the next minute.

KEYS TO UNBELIEVABLE BREAKTHROUGH

MEMORY VERSE: I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me, Proverbs 8:17

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deut 7, Ps 90, Isa 35, Rev 5

One of the keys to unbelievable breakthrough is giving. Giving gives you influence. Proverbs 18:16 says a man’s gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men. There are some doors hard work cannot open, gifts will open them within minutes. I once shared the story of a brother in church who bought his boss men's shaving accessories. Few weeks later he left the contract for a bigger contract. Everything was going on well until something happened and his contract was terminated. During Christmas period, this brother called his old boss just to say hi and wish him a Merry Christmas. As they talked , the boss asked him about the contract and he narrated what happened. Right on the spot the boss gave him his old job back ; his gift opened door for him.

Giving to God gives you great influence. It is important to note that different gifts produce different results. 2 Corinthians 9:6 says sow sparingly reap sparingly, sow generously reap generously. There are three basic types of gift. There are normal gifts, this is giving out of the abundance you have. No matter how small a gift is, God always say thank you. When you give Him a normal gift, He gives back to you in many folds. He ensures it is pressed down, shaken together and running over, Luke 6:38. The second types are the gift that hurts. These gifts cost something. An example is found in Matthew 14:13-21 where a young boy gave his lunch to Jesus. This boy gave Jesus a gift that cost something i.e. lunch. Before the end of that the boy got back twelve baskets of fish and bread from Jesus. When you go out of your way or give a God a gift that costs you something, the Lord extends His hands of generosity to you.

The third type of gift is called widow’s mites. A widow’s mite is when a widow gives all she has or when a fellow gives all he has not knowing where his next supply would come from. This is an offering of faith. When you give God such offerings, he turns a situation around. I had a major challenge not too long ago and it was obvious I was going to be sacked especially due to the no of evidences they had. After the first hearing the union representative advised me to resign because I was fighting a lost battle. Instead of resigning I decided to pay my widow’s mite. Since it was obvious that I was going to be sacked, I decided to give the last salary I was paid before the final hearing to Jesus. At the final hearing, the case turned in my favor and I was re-instated.

KEY WORD: When you give Jesus your last, He turns it into the first of many good things.