Friday, 22 August 2014
AND THERE WERE THREE DAYS IN GATHERING OF THE SPOIL
MEMORY VERSE: And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much. 2 Chronicles 22:25
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Daniel 9-12
Most of us miss opportunities, not because we are lazy or unserious. We miss opportunities simply because they come disguised. As i mentioned yesterday, opportunities come disguised as hard work. Many have missed the opportunity to become a chartered accountant because of the hard work involved in preparing for ACCA. My mum will always say, ‘work does not kill, it is idleness that kills.’
Opportunities also come disguised as big challenges. It is impossible to have a great victory without a great fight. You want to make heaven? First, die to self. Big opportunities come disguised as big challenges that will frighten you. The opportunity for King Jehoshaphat (a worshiper) and the inhabitants of Judah to be mightily blessed by God came disguised as a big war. The Ammonites, Moabites and inhabitants of Mount Seir, without being provoked, decided to wage war against tiny Judah ( 2 Chronicles 20). When King Jehoshaphat heard this news, the bible records that he feared i.e. his knees shook. He was confused, perplexed, and troubled. Unknown to this king, the decision of their enemies (Ammonites, Moabites, and Inhabitants of Mount Seir) to wage war against them was a blessing in disguise. It was a divine opportunity to enrich the inhabitants of Judah. Whilst praying, the Lord spoke through one of his prophets. ‘The battle is not yours but God’s, ‘he said. Jehoshaphat prepared a choir and they began to sing. As they praised and worshiped God, fight broke out in the camp of the enemies and they began to kill each other. By the time, the people of Judah got to the battlefront; the enemies had killed themselves and left their spoils. 2 Chronicles 22:25 says And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much. Those who run from battle miss the spoils of battle. That challenge you are going through, is a divine opportunity. When i received the news, that myself and some colleagues were going to be made redundant, i felt very sad. Unknown to me, it was a divine opportunity to become a PRINCE 2 Practitioner. The same week i was made redundant, God helped me and i passed both exams. Had it been, that challenge did not come, i probably would not have sat for the exam. Child of God, do not give the enemy of the gospel an occasion to say where is your God? Stand firm in Christ and face that challenge, victory is yours in Jesus name, amen.
ACTION: Develop yourself to begin to see the positive side of things not the negative side of things.
Bro Samuel| Reaching the world for Jesus.
Wednesday, 20 August 2014
OPPORTUNITY DISGUISED
MEMORY VERSE: The hand of the diligent shall bear rule: but the slothful shall be under tribute. Proverbs 12:25
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Daniel 4-8
Whether that prophesy or dream will come to pass in your life, will be determined by how you treat the opportunities that come your way. Also ,whether that prophesy or dream will come to pass in your life, will be determined by how you treat your wife. Asides God, you need your wife to succeed. Focus on her strengths not weakness. The more you focus on her strength, the less of her weakness you will see. Deciding not to eat at home after every little quarrel is not the best way to run a family. Most importantly, comparing her to your mother or big sister is a big no no. Remember, mama or big sister have been married for a while , they appear perfect because they have had a lot of practice. Comparing someone who have been married for ten years with another who have been married for thirty years is wickedness.
One of the reasons why people miss opportunity is because it is disguised as hard work. Ann Landers once said, “opportunities are usually disguised as hard work, so most people do not recognize them.” The reason why many are where they are, is because they hate hard work. They love to do nothing and get big results. Life does not work that way. One of the greatest inventors of all time, Thomas Edison, said and I quote , “opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”Hard work and diligence pays. Proverbs 12:25 says the hand of the diligent shall bear rule: but the slothful shall be under tribute. While everyone saw working in the palace as demanding, tedious, hard , something to avoid, Jeroboam saw working in the palace as an opportunity to please the king. 1 Kings 11:28 says and the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious , he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph. Promotion always come disguised as a new , harder, tougher challenge. That master’s degree you are seeing as a hard work is an opportunity in disguise! While many see professional qualifications like ACCA, CCNP, PRINCE 2 , etc as extra hard work , some see it as an opportunity to add value to themselves. While others saw Sanctuary keeping as degrading especially for professionals , myself and some friends saw it as an opportunity to get God’s attention. One day while cleaning, the man of God turned up and said, ‘God has specifically asked me to come and pray for you brothers.’ Those who saw it as a waste of time missed out that day. During the days of Thomas Edison, many saw sciences has hard work but this man saw it as an opportunity to invent something. Today, the whole world has, is and will continue to benefit from the hard work of Thomas Edison.
PONDER: That thing you are calling hard work, to others, it is an opportunity for breakthrough.
Bro Samuel| Reaching the world for Jesus.
Tuesday, 19 August 2014
AND GOD SAID, ASK WHAT I SHALL GIVE THEE
MEMORY VERSE: and the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee. 1 Kings 3:4-5.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Daniel 1-3
Whether a man will succeed in life or not will be determined by how he treats opportunities that comes his way. But, to take advantage of an opportunity, one must be able to identify the opportunity first. Hagar thirsted, not because of lack of water but because she could not identify the well nearby (Genesis 21:15-17). The widow struggled to pay her debts, not because God was against her but because she could not see the potential in her oil (2 Kings 4:1-7). There are a lot struggling today, simply because they cannot identify the opportunities around them.
Any time God wants to give a man breakthrough – financially, materially, spiritually, etc, He will start by throwing an opportunity to give at him. Take for instance Solomon, before he was born, God already purposed it in His mind to bless him. No wonder when he was born, God gave him the name , Jedidah , which means beloved of the Most High ( 2 Samuel 12:25). When his season of breakthrough came, God threw an opportunity to give a thousand burnt offerings at him. 1 Kings 3:4-5 says and the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee. From the day, Solomon gave that thousand burnt offerings, his life never remained the same. Some months ago, a sister shared a testimony with me. She needed money to buy somethings, she had 9,000 naira on her but it was not enough. One day, while she was praying, the Lord told her to give that 9,000 naira as an offering and she did. Few days later, a family friend (she had not spoken to in months) called from abroad and said, ‘the Lord laid it on my mind to send some money to you.’ By the time she received the money, she was speechless. As a young boy, one of my desires was to study in England. My parents wanted the same too but the resources to make that a reality was not available. One day, the Lord laid it on my mind to buy a megaphone for our church and i obeyed. On receiving the megaphone, the pastor prophesied that i was going to study abroad ( mind you , i never told him of my intention to travel )’. Few months later, I was on the plane to England to study. Anytime God wants to give a man breakthrough, He will start by giving the fellow an opportunity to sow a powerful seed. Has God laid it on your mind to give something special to Him? Do not hesitate; you could be missing the opportunity of a lifetime.
PRAYER: Father, please help me never to miss an opportunity again in my life.
Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Daniel 1-3
Whether a man will succeed in life or not will be determined by how he treats opportunities that comes his way. But, to take advantage of an opportunity, one must be able to identify the opportunity first. Hagar thirsted, not because of lack of water but because she could not identify the well nearby (Genesis 21:15-17). The widow struggled to pay her debts, not because God was against her but because she could not see the potential in her oil (2 Kings 4:1-7). There are a lot struggling today, simply because they cannot identify the opportunities around them.
Any time God wants to give a man breakthrough – financially, materially, spiritually, etc, He will start by throwing an opportunity to give at him. Take for instance Solomon, before he was born, God already purposed it in His mind to bless him. No wonder when he was born, God gave him the name , Jedidah , which means beloved of the Most High ( 2 Samuel 12:25). When his season of breakthrough came, God threw an opportunity to give a thousand burnt offerings at him. 1 Kings 3:4-5 says and the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee. From the day, Solomon gave that thousand burnt offerings, his life never remained the same. Some months ago, a sister shared a testimony with me. She needed money to buy somethings, she had 9,000 naira on her but it was not enough. One day, while she was praying, the Lord told her to give that 9,000 naira as an offering and she did. Few days later, a family friend (she had not spoken to in months) called from abroad and said, ‘the Lord laid it on my mind to send some money to you.’ By the time she received the money, she was speechless. As a young boy, one of my desires was to study in England. My parents wanted the same too but the resources to make that a reality was not available. One day, the Lord laid it on my mind to buy a megaphone for our church and i obeyed. On receiving the megaphone, the pastor prophesied that i was going to study abroad ( mind you , i never told him of my intention to travel )’. Few months later, I was on the plane to England to study. Anytime God wants to give a man breakthrough, He will start by giving the fellow an opportunity to sow a powerful seed. Has God laid it on your mind to give something special to Him? Do not hesitate; you could be missing the opportunity of a lifetime.
PRAYER: Father, please help me never to miss an opportunity again in my life.
Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.
Monday, 18 August 2014
YOUR SIZE
MEMORY VERSE: There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.1 Corinthians 10:13
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ezekiel 45 -48
In boxing, there is something called boxing weight class. They are Heavyweight, Cruiserweight, Light heavyweight, etc. Your weight determines your weight class. For example, as a boxer, if you weigh Kg 90.8 /14 st lb upward, they will put you in the Heavyweight weight class. Anything below that, they will put you in the Cruiserweight weight class and so on. In boxing, your weight determines who you can and cannot fight. The same rules applies to life challenges, the size of your destiny will determine the size of your challenges. This is why i do not envy those who do not face challenges at all. Firstly, you will never know what you are truly capable of until you face tough challenges. No one knew Jesus could raise the dead until someone died and He raised him up. David never knew he had the potential to kill a lion with his bare hands until a strange lion took one of his father’s sheep (1 Samuel 17:36). He ran after it and clubbed it to death. Secondly, stress causes expansion. There is a saying, ‘it is the stress in the catapult that drives the stone forward.’ Thirdly, if you are a threat to the kingdom of darkness, the enemy will throw challenges at you.
It does not matter, how rich your parents are, if you are going to be great in life, you will face big challenges. Actually, great challenges are inevitable for anyone with a great destiny. For instance, Joseph, at a tender age, God showed him his future. This boy saw his brother’s sheaves bowing down to him, meaning he will be ahead of his brothers (Genesis 37:7-10). He saw the sun and the moon bowing down to him. Before his dreams came to pass, he saw horror in the hands of his brothers. Firstly, they tried to kill him, when they did not succeed at that, they sold him to slavery. The route to Egypt was through Sahara desert, Joseph and other slaves had trek on foot through this hot desert in chains. Great testimonies come from great trails.
1 Corinthians 10:13 says there hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. The size of your challenges speaks volume. Great men face great challenges. A husband has only his family to worry about but the president has the whole nation to worry about. Goliath’s size clearly reveals how God saw David. Men saw him as a young boy, but by God’s standard, he was a champion! The fact that you are facing challenges does not mean that God hates you. On the contrary, your destiny is so big; the enemy knows you will touch many lives, that is why, he is throwing all those challenges at you to break you. Before God permitted that challenge to come your way, He first gave you enough strength to stand in the midst of it. Do not backslide because of that challenge. Do not compromise because of what you are going through at work or in marriage.
PRAYER POINT: Father, glorify yourself in my life.
Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ezekiel 45 -48
In boxing, there is something called boxing weight class. They are Heavyweight, Cruiserweight, Light heavyweight, etc. Your weight determines your weight class. For example, as a boxer, if you weigh Kg 90.8 /14 st lb upward, they will put you in the Heavyweight weight class. Anything below that, they will put you in the Cruiserweight weight class and so on. In boxing, your weight determines who you can and cannot fight. The same rules applies to life challenges, the size of your destiny will determine the size of your challenges. This is why i do not envy those who do not face challenges at all. Firstly, you will never know what you are truly capable of until you face tough challenges. No one knew Jesus could raise the dead until someone died and He raised him up. David never knew he had the potential to kill a lion with his bare hands until a strange lion took one of his father’s sheep (1 Samuel 17:36). He ran after it and clubbed it to death. Secondly, stress causes expansion. There is a saying, ‘it is the stress in the catapult that drives the stone forward.’ Thirdly, if you are a threat to the kingdom of darkness, the enemy will throw challenges at you.
It does not matter, how rich your parents are, if you are going to be great in life, you will face big challenges. Actually, great challenges are inevitable for anyone with a great destiny. For instance, Joseph, at a tender age, God showed him his future. This boy saw his brother’s sheaves bowing down to him, meaning he will be ahead of his brothers (Genesis 37:7-10). He saw the sun and the moon bowing down to him. Before his dreams came to pass, he saw horror in the hands of his brothers. Firstly, they tried to kill him, when they did not succeed at that, they sold him to slavery. The route to Egypt was through Sahara desert, Joseph and other slaves had trek on foot through this hot desert in chains. Great testimonies come from great trails.
1 Corinthians 10:13 says there hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. The size of your challenges speaks volume. Great men face great challenges. A husband has only his family to worry about but the president has the whole nation to worry about. Goliath’s size clearly reveals how God saw David. Men saw him as a young boy, but by God’s standard, he was a champion! The fact that you are facing challenges does not mean that God hates you. On the contrary, your destiny is so big; the enemy knows you will touch many lives, that is why, he is throwing all those challenges at you to break you. Before God permitted that challenge to come your way, He first gave you enough strength to stand in the midst of it. Do not backslide because of that challenge. Do not compromise because of what you are going through at work or in marriage.
PRAYER POINT: Father, glorify yourself in my life.
Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.
Sunday, 17 August 2014
THE WIDOW GAVE MORE
MEMORY: And he said, of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all. Luke 21:3
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ezekiel 42-44
BIBLE STUDIES: Luke 21:1- 4
God does not see things as men see them. Isaiah 55:8 says for my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. Whilst men look at the outward appearance – the suit, smell of cologne, stature, professional qualification, etc, God looks at the heart. This is why He picked David over his brothers. If God were to look into your heart right now, what will He find? Eye service? Lip service? False humility? Selective humility? God prefers quality to quantity. He would rather work with two serious individuals than waste His resources on 100 others who are not ready to take on responsibilities. When He wanted to defeat the Midianites in Judges 7, He picked 300 out of the 30,000 available. As far as He is concerned, the 29,700 were not ready.
There are a lot to learn from the story in Luke 21:1-4. Although this widow gave the least in monetary terms, according to Jesus, she gave the most. Luke 21:3 says and he said, of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all. There are several reasons why Jesus said she gave the most. First of all, while some gave grudgingly, she gave cheerfully. 2 Corinthians 9:7 says every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. Some may ask, how do you know she gave cheerfully? If she had not given cheerfully, Jesus would not have said she gave the most. Secondly, her gift cost her something. Luke 21:4 says for all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all that living that she had. When was the last time you gave God a gift that cost you something? Thirdly, her gift reflected her faith in God. On a normal day, she would have saved her last for the rainy day but she gave it because she believed that God will provide for her. Lastly, she gave all.
TO PONDER: The services you render in the house of God, do you do them grudgingly or out of necessity or with a cheerful heart? What has your service in the house of God cost you? Do you give your best when given an assignment or act as if you are doing the pastor a favour?
Bro Samuel| Reaching the world for Jesus.
Friday, 15 August 2014
THUS THEY WERE FINISHED
MEMORY VERSE: Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. Genesis 2:1
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ezekiel 39-41
Genesis is popularly known as the book of beginnings. This book gives us an idea of how God works. The Most High God is very organized and meticulous. He does not work anyhow or haphazardly. Maybe i should add this; He is excellent at keeping records too. Psalm 56:8 says thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book? He has a record of our labour of love and He will reward. He also has records of unredeemed pledges too, so if you have made a pledge, please redeem it or put plans in place to redeem your pledges. Our God works according to a plan, first He forms, and then fills. He formed the earth and then filled it with plants and animals. He formed the firmament and filled with stars and planets. He formed the seas and then filled them with living creatures. Has God laid it on your mind to form something, please form it and watch Him fill it? Has He laid it on your mind to start a business? Do not wait until you have customers before starting. Start the business first, and the customers will follow. Is God leading you to start a drama group or music band? Do not wait until you have everyone, start with whatever you have and He will bring the rest. If you and I will yield to Him, He will form and fill our lives.
Whatever God starts, He finishes. Genesis 2:1 says thus the heavens and the earth were finished, all the host of them. Whatever God has started in my life and your life, He will not stop until He finishes it. Philippians 1:6 says being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. Have you stopped paying your tithes because you are trying to build a house or get a mortgage? In other to save up to pay for a holiday, have you stopped tithing? Please repent immediately. Whatever He starts, He finishes. Therefore, every child of God must desist from starting something and not finishing it. It is not a good practice. There are many who have abandoned projects. An abandoned project is not useful to anyone and it does not give God glory too. Are you the type that picks up a book, reads it for a while, dumps it, picks another one and dumps it half away? This not a good practice, once you start a book, do everything in your power to finish it. Once you start a course, do every thing in your power to finish the course. Do not start a course and stop mid way, it is not good. Have you started learning to speak a new language or musical instrument, finish it. If you are struggling to complete something you have started, take it to the Lord in prayer. Do not abandon that Masters Program you are on, it may be tough but continue, at the end you will rejoice. Have you started writing a book and you are under pressure to quit? Receive the divine strength in Jesus name, amen. God wants every of His children to finish whatever project they have started. Are you under pressure to quit your apprenticeship? Finish it, the experience will be useful somewhere else in the future.
PRAYER POINT: Father, please give me the grace to finish everything i have started.
Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.
ALL SHALL BE RAISED.
MEMORY VERSE: marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life: and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. John 5:28-29
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ezekiel 36-38
In the beginning, God did not intend for man whom He created in His own image to die. Sin, disobedience to the commandment of God, is what brought about death, and that is what gave the grave, power to hold man down in death. Our Christian faith is based on the fact that Christ paid the full price of our sin, this He did when He died on the Cross and shed His precious blood for our redemption from sin and to restore man to the original plan of God. His resurrection is a mark that God has accepted His atoning sacrifice on the cross. Not only that, His resurrection is a proof that the dead will rise:death is not the end of life. 1 Corinthians 15:17-18 says and if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain, ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If Christ had not risen, our hope would have been a dead hope but thank God, He rose from the dead.
That Christ rose from the dead is a surety that all shall be raised to life again. One day all shall be raised – some to honour and some to dishonour. Daniel 12:2 says And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. Jesus said in John 5:28-29 marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life: and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. Therefore, the question is not whether the dead will rise again, but the question now is, unto what shall you be raised? Is it to everlasting joy or to everlasting damnation? The life you are living now, where will it lead to – everlasting joy or damnation? Make haste and repent while the door of mercy is still wide open. A time will come when you will want to give up everything and pay any price but it will be too late.
Because Christ resurrected, your service is not in vain. There is a reward for every service we render unto the Lord. Everyone of us who has accepted Christ as our personal Lord and Saviour will stand before the Judgement seat of Christ and we will be rewarded based on what we have done – good or bad ( 2 Corinthians 5:10). God is not unfaithful to forget our labour of love. Therefore we should spend and be spent for our Master. We must continue to witness about Christ to friends, family, and everyone who is yet to give their life to Christ. We must also live our lives as someone who is expecting the second coming of Christ. We must continue to run from anything that could defile us or stain our robes.
QUESTION: How many souls have you led to Christ this year?
Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ezekiel 36-38
In the beginning, God did not intend for man whom He created in His own image to die. Sin, disobedience to the commandment of God, is what brought about death, and that is what gave the grave, power to hold man down in death. Our Christian faith is based on the fact that Christ paid the full price of our sin, this He did when He died on the Cross and shed His precious blood for our redemption from sin and to restore man to the original plan of God. His resurrection is a mark that God has accepted His atoning sacrifice on the cross. Not only that, His resurrection is a proof that the dead will rise:death is not the end of life. 1 Corinthians 15:17-18 says and if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain, ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If Christ had not risen, our hope would have been a dead hope but thank God, He rose from the dead.
That Christ rose from the dead is a surety that all shall be raised to life again. One day all shall be raised – some to honour and some to dishonour. Daniel 12:2 says And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. Jesus said in John 5:28-29 marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life: and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. Therefore, the question is not whether the dead will rise again, but the question now is, unto what shall you be raised? Is it to everlasting joy or to everlasting damnation? The life you are living now, where will it lead to – everlasting joy or damnation? Make haste and repent while the door of mercy is still wide open. A time will come when you will want to give up everything and pay any price but it will be too late.
Because Christ resurrected, your service is not in vain. There is a reward for every service we render unto the Lord. Everyone of us who has accepted Christ as our personal Lord and Saviour will stand before the Judgement seat of Christ and we will be rewarded based on what we have done – good or bad ( 2 Corinthians 5:10). God is not unfaithful to forget our labour of love. Therefore we should spend and be spent for our Master. We must continue to witness about Christ to friends, family, and everyone who is yet to give their life to Christ. We must also live our lives as someone who is expecting the second coming of Christ. We must continue to run from anything that could defile us or stain our robes.
QUESTION: How many souls have you led to Christ this year?
Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.
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