GETTING BIG?

MEMORY VERSE: And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel? 1 Samuel15:17

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Mark 7-8

It is not a good thing to be reminded, by a colleague or a friend, of how one used to behave or carry his or herself before promotion. I will be cautious if a friend reminds me of how i used to be humble. If it comes from someone older or higher, then i will be concerned. If it is coming from my spiritual parents, i will be worried. If it comes from God, Creator of heavens and the earth, i would cry out for mercy. I know you will do the same too. This is similar to what happened when Saul returned from partially disobeying God i.e. disobeying God. In 1 Samuel 15:1-3, God sent him to destroy the Amalekites because of their wickedness. Several years prior, without being provoked or anything, the Amalekites attacked the children of Israel killing several of them. When he got to Amalek, he destroyed the worthless things and kept the good and valuable things for himself and his men. When he returned, the Lord sent Samuel with a message to him. 1 Samuel 15:17 says, “And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel?” On hearing this, I thought Saul would bow his head and cry for mercy. I expected him to immediately put things right because it was obvious that the Most High was really displeased with him. Saul did not do any of this. Instead he gave excuses. At the end, he was replaced.

Are you like Saul? He never used to challenge his father in the Lord, Samuel, until he became king. Not only that, he used to obey God until he became king. You used to be small in your own eyes before you went to bible school. You never used to argue with your spiritual leaders i.e. pastors and bishops. You never used to challenge your pastors in public? Now that you have returned from bible school, you now see faults in virtually everything. You see faults in how the pastor preaches, you see fault in how he pronounces Greek names. Not only that, you are now beginning to challenge him in the open. Saul became familiar with the prophet when he became king - something that never happened before his ordination. He became so familiar with the man of God that he could tear his clothes. Have you now become familiar with your spiritual leaders that you now treat them as equals? Have you now become familiar with them that you no longer give them their due honour? Have you now become familiar that you now keep malice with them? Have you now become so familiar that they are now scared to correct you because you can do and undo? There was a time in Saul’s life when he used to fear God. There was a time when he used to put God and God’s work before anything else. Now, Saul had become so big and God had become so small in his eyes that he could now displease God to please man. What ‘man’ thought of him was more important to him than what God thought of him. How 'man' perceived him was more important than how God perceived him. Do you now serve God at your convenience? When God gives you an instruction, do you carry them out immediately or at your convenience? Pride starts from the heart before it manifests out in actions. What’s your heart like as you are reading this? How do you now treat the Word of God?

ACTION: Carry out a self assessment of your life. Is God still number one in your life? Are you still willing to go out of your way to please God?

PRAYER POINT: Father, help me never to become an ex-child of God.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

MEETING HIS EXPECTATIONS?

MEMORY VERSE: And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but whereare the nine? Luke 17:17

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Corinthians 11-12

BIBLE STUDY: Luke 17:11-19

The Lord expects a lot from His children - both young and old. Who are His children? Romans 8:14 says this: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” The Spirit of God leads people to do things which are in consonance with the Word of God. He leads people to live honest, open and transparent lifestyles. The spirit of the Lord will never lead a brother to propose to two or three sisters at the same time. No! He is not a spirit of confusion. Neither will He lead any sister to accept marriage proposals from two brothers at the same time. He is a God of order. The Lord is entitled to expect much from us, His children, because of His investments in our lives. We were heading for destruction before someone preached to us and He touched our hearts and we accepted Him as our personal Lord and savior. With the kind of lifestyles some of us were living before we met Christ, we were on the fast lane to sudden destruction. Many of us have failed and failed before He came into our life and turned it around. Many used to be sick before Jesus entered into their boat and sickness disappeared. I remember before i met Christ, i was living in fear – fear of the unknown. Now that i am in Christ, i have no fear because i know my future. Oh yes, i know my future because 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.” I also know that Christ in me, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27), so i have nothing to worry about. You also don’t have anything to worry about because you are a child of God.

What are His expectations? He expects us to be grateful for all He has done. After healing those ten lepers, He expected them to return to say thank you. He was shocked when only one of them returned. Luke 17:17 says, “And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but whereare the nine.” That thing He did for you maybe small in your eyes, but to some, it is a big testimony. Besides, there are no small testimonies. Even if He is yet to answer that particular prayer request, you still need to be grateful for those things He has done. Another way to show Him our appreciation is through our payment of tithes and offerings. God owns the whole world so He is not broke. Let’s say He needs money (which He doesn't), He can touch the heart of any billionaire and they will give Him as much as He needs. When we bring our tithes and offerings, we are not doing the church a favor neither are we doing God a favor. No! When we bring our tithes to Him, it is a sign of our appreciation. What we are saying is ‘out of the much You have given to me, i am bringing this little gift to appreciate You’.

Another way to appreciate Him is to use our skills and expertise for Jesus. Some are good at designing websites, use that skill to design a website for your church or a ministry. If you are a doctor, organize free health seminars in your parish or ministry and teach people about healthy living. You may be a good business person, organize free seminars to teach fellow believers how to start a business. Some are good at organizing programs, don’t wait to be called before you go and meet the minister and volunteer to be part of the organizing committee. The Lord also expects us to be grateful to the vessels He has used to bless us. Someone waited on the Lord for several hours ( and even fasted) before God gave him or her that 'life transforming message' you heard. If you can’t bless them with material gifts, at least you can say thank you to him or her. These things encourage men and women of God. If the Lord uses a brother or sister for you, appreciate God in their life and appreciate them.

NOTE: Anytime you appreciate people, you are opening a door for God to use them for you and others.

ACTION: Call someone who God has used to bless you in the past and thank them.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

IN A DREAM

MEMORY VERSE: But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. Matthew 1:20

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Jeremiah 7-11

BIBLE STUDY: Matthew 1:18-23

There are several sources of dreams. Dreams can come as a result of our activities during the day. Ecclesiastes 5:3 says, “For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words.” Maybe you have been shopping and getting things ready for your holiday, you may sleep and find yourself already on holiday. The source of this type of dream is the mind. At times, if one is in love with a particular sister or brother, one may sleep at night and find himself or herself getting married to that brother or sister. The fact that one slept and saw himself or herself getting married to a brother or sister does not mean it is from God. Such dreams may come as a result of what is already in one’s heart. This is why, when praying about a brother or sister, always get other believers to pray along with you. Or you received an offer for a job that you want badly; you may dream and find yourself working in that job. That does not mean God has given you a go-ahead. If i were you, i will get other believers to pray along with me. According to Deuteronomy 19:15, at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established. I know as a child of God, you don’t indulge in pornography, nude pictures or sex talks, but those that do may sleep and find themselves fornicating or committing adultery with people in their dreams. In a nutshell, our dreams can come as a result of things that are on our mind.

Dreams can also come as a result of hunger or thirst. If one feels like eating porridge before going to bed, he or she may dream of eating porridge. In addition, if one goes to bed on an empty stomach, i would not be shocked if the person finds himself eating in the dream. Isaiah 29:8 says, “It shall even be as when an hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty: or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite: so shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against mount Zion.” Dreams can come as a result of spiritual attack. For example, if you sleep and you find a big snake chasing you when you don’t work in a zoo , then that could be a spiritual attack. Or you find dogs chasing you in your dreams and you are neither a vet nor a dog owner or have dogs around you, then that could also be a spiritual attack. My advice is this; once you wake up cancel the dream and plead the blood of Jesus. Also, share it with your father or mother in the Lord or your pastors. Today, we want to look at dreams that come from God. Dreams from God come for various reasons. At times, God gives answers to questions through dreams. One of the thoughts that Joseph must have entertained in his heart, when he found that Mary was pregnant, would have been, ‘who is responsible for the baby?’ In the dream, the Lord provided him with an answer. Matthew1:20 says, “But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.” At times, He re-assures and encourages one to be calm through dreams.The angel told Joseph, “....... fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife....” As you can see, He can decide to tell one his or her marriage partner through dreams. The Lord can give instructions through a dream. He can also give a vital information that could lead to a major breakthrough. These are some of the things He does through a dream. One thing is very crucial with dreams and that is the ability to remember dreams.

NOTE: If God gives an individual information that could lead to breakthrough in a dream, and the fellow forgets, that fellow may miss a major breakthrough.

PRAYER POINT: Father, help me to always remember my dreams as from today.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

WHAT LEVEL OF REVELATION?

MEMORY VERSE: And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory. Exodus 33:18

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Job 27-28

There are different levels of knowledge. Take for instance, the knowledge of a particular brand of car called ‘Mercedes Benz’. There are different levels of knowledge of a Mercedes Benz car. Firstly, there are people who have no knowledge of Mercedes Benz at all. Some have never heard that name before in their life. You may find it hard to believe but there are some indigenous tribes in the Amazon rain-forest who don’t wear clothes. They have never seen a car in their life talk-less of know a Mercedes Benz car or any car whatsoever. Secondly, there are some of us who know Mercedes Benz. Although, we may not be opportuned to see them every day like those who live in big cities but at least, we can tell the difference between a Mercedes Benz and Toyota or BMW. Thirdly, there are some who own or drive a Mercedes Benz car. These people know Mercedes Benz at least better than some of us who don’t own a car and definitely, far better than our brothers and sisters in the Amazon rain-forests. Lastly, there are people who make Mercedes Benz cars. These are the people, who we can say, truly knows Mercedes Benz. If a Mercedes Benz develops fault, they know what is wrong with it and can fix it.

This applies to humans too. Take for instance the Prime Minister (PM). There are people who have never heard of the PM in their life. They don't even know if a country called England exists. These people don’t have any knowledge of him. Secondly, there are people who have seen his picture, probably in the newspaper or poster. These people know the PM to some extent. Thirdly, there are people who went to the same school or worked with the PM. These people know the PM better than those of us who see him on TV, and definitely far better than those good people in the Amazon rain-forests. Fourthly, there are the PM's family and friends. These people, especially parents, know the PM better his colleagues. They raised the PM. They watched him grow from a boy to become a man. Fifthly, there is the wife. She knows a lot about the PM especially intimate things. This is because they share the same bedroom. But God, who created the PM, knows the PM more than himself. He knows the PM's future.

Just as our knowledge of people or things are in levels, so also our knowledge of God. Firstly, there are people who don't believe in God. Secondly, there are people who believe in God’s existence, they may or may not practice any religion. To some extent, these people know God. Thirdly, there are people who have read the bible or go to church. These people know God and they can say a thing or two about God e.g. they know God is love. Fourthly, there are people who have experienced God's power, maybe they had a serious challenge and God came through for them or they received a miracle. These people know God at least better than people who believe God exists. Fifthly, there are people who have walked with God for several years e.g. Enoch, Moses, etc. They are regularly led by the Spirit of God. They even hear the audible voice of God once in a while. The bible records that Moses spoke to God face to face like a man speaks to his friend ( Exodus 33:11). That is a very deep knowledge of God. Beyond this very deep knowledge of God is yet a deeper knowledge of God. Exodus 33:18 says, “And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.” Except God, Himself, reveals His glory unto us, we have not truly known the Lord.

NOTE: Although, there are still more revelations that awaits us in heaven, but whilst we are here on earth, we must yearn to behold the glory of the Lord.

PRAYER POINT: Father, show me your glory.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

RECOGNIZING AND BREAKING EVIL PATTERNS

MEMORY VERSE: And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? Luke 9:54

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalm 39-41

What is a pattern? The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as a reliable sample of traits, acts, tendencies, or other observable characteristics of a person, group, or institution. A teacher with thirty years of teaching experience, during an end-of-the-year programme of a school, encouraged parents to keep an eye on their children and stamp out any behavioral pattern that could be detrimental to their progress in the future. According to her, young children grow up to be bigger pictures of who they currently are and unless there was some kind of intervention – parental or divine. Just as a child’s life is predictable, the outcome of a person’s life, whether as a success or a failure, can also be determined beforehand (to a very great extent). Just by observing patterns in one’s biological or spiritual family, whether one will fail or succeed can be determined beforehand. Unless one is able to recognize any evil patterns present, pray and (in some cases) fast to break these patterns, one may end up facing the same challenges one’s parents or family faced in their marriage, finances, health, etc. Not until the Holy Spirit opens one’s eyes to see these evil patterns, untold sorrow, failure –at- the- edge- of- success, divorce, marital delay, etc, is inevitable.

Remember, “ we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Ephesians 6:12)”, and as such, the moment the Holy Spirit open’s your eyes to recognize any evil pattern(s) in your life or family, prayerfully break these patterns. (Note: These patterns are no one’s faults except the devil that steals, kills and destroys). Looking at the life of Abraham, Isaac (his son) and Jacob (his grandson), we find an evil pattern of 'delay in childbearing'. Abraham’s wife (Sarah) was barren and did not give birth until the age of 90 years. Isaac’s wife (Rebekah) was barren. Genesis 25:21 says, “and Isaac intreated the Lord for his wife, because she was barren: and the Lord was entreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.” Jacob’s second wife (Rachel) also experienced bareness (Genesis29:31). Had each of them not cry to God, they may have ended up childless. In the family of Zebedee, it was fiery and destructive anger. Although the bible did not tell us about their parent’s temper, we don’t need to travel far to know the source of their anger. Where else would they have gotten that fiery and destructive anger from except home? Luke9:54 says, “And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did?” For two brothers of the same parents, to exhibit that kind of anger, i doubt they didn't inherit it. Besides, research has proved that children do inherit their parent’s anger. Some of the reasons why many of us are unable to recognize these evil patterns, even when the Holy Spirit highlights them to us is because we see them as coincidences. I want you to know that evil patterns can be broken. It was broken in the life of Abraham and his children. It was also broken in the life of John and James. Do not give the enemy a foothold in your life.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: You can break that evil pattern of failure-at-the- edge-of-success with prayer. You can break that evil pattern of divorce with prayer. You can break that evil pattern of impecuniosity with prayer. You can break that evil pattern of marrying late with praying and fasting. You don’t have to face what others faced. You don't have to go through what others went through. Good things can begin with you. You can become the first to get it right in marriage.

PRAYER POINT: Father, i break every evil pattern in my life in Jesus name.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

SUFFERING IN SILENCE?

MEMORY VERSE: And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. Exodus 12:41

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Samuel 16-20

There is a time for ‘everything’ under the heavens (Ecclesiastes 3:1). According to Ecclesiastes 3:2-8, there is a time to be born and there is a time die. There is a time to keep silent, and a time to speak and so on. This brings us to this question, ‘who controls time?’ God. Daniel 2:21 says, “And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:” The Most High God decides when one faces his or her trial of faith. Matthew 4:1 says, “Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.” Trails of faith have so many advantages. For instance, they are opportunity for spiritual maturity (James 1:3). Not only that, you will never know the great things that God has deposited inside you until you face some challenges. David never knew he had the potential to kill a lion and bear with his bare hands until a bear and lion tried to steal his sheep (1 Samuel 17:34). The Lord determines how long the trial of faith will last for. Genesis 15:13 says, “And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years.” He determines when one's waiting period comes to an end. In Genesis 18, during God’s visit to Abraham, He told Sarah that her waiting period was over. Verse 14 says, “Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.”

One may ask, ‘how about when something evil happens, does God decide that?’ God does not do evil. Job 34:12 says, “Yea, surely God will not do wickedly, neither will the Almighty pervert judgment.” Although God does not do evil, nothing happens except He allows it and He will not allow something He cannot use. In His infinite wisdom, He allows some things so as to bring a testimony out of it. Although God cannot be stopped, when He wants to work in our lives He expects our cooperation. God’s initial plan was that the children of Israel will spend 400 years in Egypt but they spent 430 years. Exodus 12:41 says, “And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt.” Why? When the children of Israel were supposed to cry to God for deliverance, they kept quiet. Matthew 7:7-8 says, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek and you shall find; knock, and it shall be given you: for every one that asketh recieveth: and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” Even when Pharaoh was killing all their male children, they just kept quiet. It is baffling that people can be suffering to the point of losing their children and still keep quiet. Not until they cried to God, their situation did not change. Are you suffering in silence? There is nothing spiritual in people taking advantage of you and you keep quiet. No! It is time to cry to God to fight your cause! It is time to cry to God to defend you! It is time to cry to God to fight your battle for you! As far as one keeps quiet, things will not change.

NOTE: Stop asking God if He can’t see what you are going through. Report the matter to Him!

PRAYER POINT: Father, fight for me today.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.

TEARS IN HEAVEN

MEMORY VERSE: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. 2 Peter 1:4

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Exodus 1:4

One event the whole world is waiting for is the second coming of Christ. The day He comes to take us home is going to be a glorious day. When we arrive in heaven, there will be a lot of meeting-with-the- saints, greeting-fellow-brothers-and-sisters who made it and so on. It is also going to be an emotional event. Oh yes! There will be a lot of tears. Revelations 21:4says, “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” One may ask, ‘why the tears?’ Well, they will be tears of joy. When we look back on our journey through the ‘narrow road’ that leads to heaven, all our struggles, all the humiliations, prices we paid, sacrifices, selfless service and all that, we will weep for joy, knowing that it was not in vain. We will weep for joy , knowing that we finally made it! We will weep for joy , knowing that all our struggles, pains and sickness, are all over for eternity!

Another event that will bring tears to our eyes is when we find out that some of our brothers and sisters in the Lord did't make it, probably because they left the 'narrow path' for the 'broad road'. Or, we found that some of our loved ones didn't make it. Oh God! The fact that we will then be separated from them for eternity will cause tears to flow. We will weep because it will dawn on us that we could have done much more to get them to heaven. We could have dedicated a day or two, in a week, to pray and fast for their salvation. We could have gone after our brethren who left the ‘narrow road’ for the ‘broad road’ and brought them back. When we look back at what we could have done to get them to heaven and we didn't, and the fact that it is now 'too' late, tears will start to flow down our cheeks. Another major event that will cause many to weep is when saints will be rewarded for their deeds in the body and crowns given out. When one looks at the opportunities he or she has had, to serve the Lord and earn great rewards and didn't, tears will begin to flow. When Christ begins to tell us what we could have gotten, if only we were more diligent, if only we won more souls, if only we did more follow-ups, if only we gave to the poor more, if only we fasted and prayed more, if only we gave more to the work of God, if only we didn't skip service to pursue shifts at work , if only we gave when the Holy Spirit prompted us to give, if only we didn't procrastinate, etc, uncontrollable tears will begin to flow down our cheeks. When we look at the number of crowns available for any brother or sister who served God in spirit and truth and also endured persecution and shame, and the number of crowns we received, maybe out of the five available crowns, we only received a tiny one, tears will begin to flow. Also, when we see our unclaimed inheritance – things we should have had on earth that we didn't, probably due to our ignorance of those promises or our disobedience to His conditions for those promises, tears will also flow. A brother had a dream of heaven and the angels showed him an enormous warehouse filled with boxes of every shape and size. In those boxes were gifts and blessings that were available to God’s children, but which they never took time to claim. 2 Peter 1:4 says, “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” The biggest cause of tears will be the realization that it is too late to work harder, claim the blessings, win souls, etc.

QUESTION : If Christ comes now, are you going to make heaven?

ACTION: Examine your life and look at how you are spending time. Start working towards your rewards in heaven. Are you doing enough for the Master?

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world for Jesus.