DIVINE PROMOTION SHOULD NOT CHANGE YOU

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? First Samuel 15:17

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 131-133

In First Samuel 17, Jesse sent his youngest son, David, to the Valley of Elah to deliver food stuffs to his brothers who had followed Saul to war. When he arrived, he heard Goliath challenging Saul and his men. A holy anger arose in him and he volunteered to fight Goliath. Saul tried to discourage David unsuccessfully . 1 Samuel 17:37 says: “David said moreover, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD be with thee.” Saul gave David his armor but he rejected it as he was uncomfortable with them. David with his sling and stones coupled with the help of God conquered Goliath. There are several lessons we can learn from this story. Firstly, a familiar sling and stone is better than an unfamiliar sophisticated military gear.

Secondly, divine promotion should not change you. Success should not change how you relate to your fellow brothers, disciplers or God. The bible is littered with several examples of people who changed after the Lord promoted them. A typical example is King Saul. He was humble before he was anointed king over Israel. According to First Samuel 15:17, he saw himself as unimportant before he was made king. First Samuel 15:1 says: "Samuel also said unto Saul, The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the LORD.” The question is this, why, on God's green earth, was this old prophet reminding Saul of his humble beginning? Why remind Saul of how he was instructed to anoint him? If for one reason or the other your husband or pastor began to remind you that he is your husband or pastor, you are probably undermining his authority as your husband or your pastor. That was exactly what Samuel was trying to do. He observed some changes in Saul; hence, the need for that reminder. Unfortunately, the reminder meant nothing to him. Out of pride, he disobeyed God by destroying the worthless things and keeping the valuable things for himself. When Samuel refused to go with him to offer sacrifice because he had disobeyed God, he tore his robe.

David never for once attributed his past success to his strength or anything. He told Saul, “the Lord that delivered me out......” Between First Samuel 17:45 to 47, he mentioned the name of the Lord over six times – depending on the version of the bible you are reading from. The Lord did this.... the Lord did that.... the Lord that did this will do that... etc. It is sad that success has shut the mouth of many. They no longer witness about Christ because they think evangelism is for poor people. Also, divine promotion/provision has caused many to disdain their skin colour and as such, they bleach. Divine promotion should bring us closer to God not draw us away from Him. Success should not turn you into a modern Christian or liberal Christian. You are either a Christian or not a Christian. As a result of success, many have requested to move from sanctuary keeping to join the protocol team. They want a more posh role in the church; something more dignifying – according to them. It is God who will reward, and fortunately, those roles you consider as not dignifying attract greater rewards. If you clean His house He will clean your life. If anything, success should encourage you to serve God more.

QUESTION: In what ways have you changed as a result of your divine promotion ? Have you now become unruly because you were promoted at work? Repent today!

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USE WHAT YOU ARE FAMILIAR WITH

MEMORY VERSE: And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine. 1 Samuel 7:40

 

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ezra 1-5

BIBLE READING: 1 Samuel 17:31-40

David went to the battlefield to drop some foodstuffs for his brothers who had followed Saul to war. There, he heard Goliath, a Philistine, a giant and also a champion, harassing the armies of Israel. 1 Samuel 17:8-10 says, “And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array?am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me. If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us. And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.” A holy anger arose in him; he volunteered to fight Goliath so they took him to Saul – probably to talk him out of it because he was very young. “There's no way you can fight this Philistine and possibly win!” he said, “You're only a boy, and he's been a man of war since his youth.” Persistent knocking opens doors. David's persistence wore Saul down; at last, he gave him the go ahead. He offered him his fighting gears which David tried and found very uncomfortable. 1 Samuel 17:40 says, “And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.” God gave David victory over Goliath using ordinary sling and stones. 

 There are several lessons we can learn from this story. A familiar sling and stone is better than an unfamiliar sophisticated military gear. There is a saying where i came from: “a known devil is better than an unknown angel.” You know what to expect from the known devil. You know how he behaves and what to expect from him but with the unknown angel you have no clue. He could even be worse than the unknown angel. (NOTE: When we say a known devil, we are talking of human beings not satanic agents. An unknown angel of God is always better a known devil.) When attending to a critical matter especially those with little margin of errors, it is better to use a tool or employ an approach you are familiar with. I will rather work on a project with a group of average people i have worked with in the past and achieved success with than a group of experts i have never worked with. The familiar (sling and stone) is better than the unfamiliar (sophisticated military gear) because you know its strengths and weaknesses. That knowledge alone gives you an added advantage; you can work on its strength to your advantage. Besides, there is more to winning wars than having the latest sophisticated military gears or high-tech equipments. Weapons don’t always win wars; history proves this. Ecclesiastes 9:11 says, “I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.” Brute force or bullying tactics don’t win wars. 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.” One may plan and strategize but God decides the outcome of the war. Proverbs 21:31 says, “The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD.”

NOTE: David didn’t try to show off, he used what he was familiar with although they were old fashioned and achieved success. 

PRAYER: Pray that peace will reign in Syria and other war torn countries.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

DON’T ALTER THE LORD’S INSTRUCTION

MEMORY VERSE: And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams' horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets. Joshua 6:4

BIBLE READING: Numbers 34-36

One of the secrets of success is studying successful people and doing what they did. If you want the kind of success Steve Jobs (Apple founder) had, get his autobiography, study what he did and do the same. Some years back, Elon Musk (founder of PayPal, Tesla Motors, Space X, etc.) in an interview mentioned that he read the autobiography of Steve Jobs and learnt a lot from it. If you want the kind of Daniel’s success, third-in-command to an emperor who ruled the world ( Daniel 6:1-2), or Joseph’s, a man who created economic and business models that sustained the economy of Egypt (the greatest economy at that time) when currency failed, read their autobiographies which are documented in the Holy Scriptures and do what they did. As for me, I want all so I read everything; viz.,the Bible, autobiographies, memoirs, etc.

Let us briefly look at two of many secrets of Joshua’s success. Firstly, Joshua did well because Moses laid hands on him. Deuteronomy 34:9 says: “And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him: and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as the LORD commanded Moses.” Moses laid hands on Joshua and transferred the grace and anointing he carried to Joshua. Also, Moses literally laid hands on him as in mentor him. Secondly, Joshua did well in ministry because he followed (divine) instructions to the letter. Many of us find it hard to follow basic instructions. The doctor says, “take two tablets three times daily." What do we do? We take three tablets four times daily. That’s drug abuse and no child of God should abuse drugs. Joshua followed God’s instruction to the letter. The Lord’s instruction to Joshua was “….And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams' horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets… ( Joshua 6:4)”. What did he do? He ensured that the priests used trumpets of ram’s horns not goat’s horns. Joshua 6:6 says: “And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said unto them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark of the LORD.” Again, the Lord told him to pick seven men i.e. priests and he did that. Some would have picked six men and a woman because they want to be politically correct.

NOTE: The Lord is the wiser than the wisest. He knows why He chose ram’s horn over goat’s horn. Learn to follow His instructions to the letter.

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YOUR FAITH PLEASES GOD

MEMORY VERSE: But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Hebrews 11:6

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deuteronomy 13-15

BIBLE READING: Romans 4:16-22

There is nothing as insulting as your children doubting you or your ability to take care of them. Imagine for a second that you overheard one of your children expressing his doubts in your ability to look after him or meet his basic needs – cloth, food and shelter- with his friends. How would that make you feel as a loving, responsible father? It will hurt; i mean you will feel really disappointed especially if there are no bases for such. The same thing happens when we doubt the Most High God. There is nothing as insulting to God as doubting His ability or His words. Firstly, He does not tell lies. He has never told one and He has no need to tell one. Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” Secondly, He is limited by nothing. He said to Jeremiah: “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me (Jeremiah 32:27)”? Thirdly, once He says something consider it done. Psalm 33:8-9 says, “Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. For he spake and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.”

There was a great famine in Samaria that lasted so long resulting in people eating bird’s faeces and only the rich could afford it (2 Kings 6:25-2 Kings 7). Things were so bad that women began to eat their children. I pray you will never experience famine of any kind in Jesus name, Amen. And, if you are experiencing one at the moment the good Lord send provision your way in Jesus name, Amen. In the midst of this famine, God spoke and promised to turn things around within 24 hours. Everyone will have so much that there won't be need to buy anything, as such the price of food items would drop. One of the king’s advisers, a special adviser in God-knows-what said it was impossible. “Even if the Lord should open the floodgates of the heavens”, he said, “Could this happen?” This man called the Most High God a liar in the presence of all. The man of God said to him, “Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.” What caused the famine was Benhadad (king of Syria) besieged Samaria; no one could go in or come out thereby shutting off food supplies. The Lord caused Benhadad and his men to hear a strange noise and out of panic, they ran away leaving their horses and all they had acquired from their raids. The people heard the news, rushed out and collected spoils for themselves. To manage the situation, the king appointed that man who doubted the words of the Lord to manage and oversee the whole affair. As the people where rushing out they trampled on him and he died. He saw it but did not eat from it as the word of the Lord.

On the other hand, there is nothing that pleases God like faith in Him or His words. Hebrews 11:6 says, “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” Your faith pleases God. A man whose faith pleased God was Abraham. He was not just old, the bible says “He was well advanced in age”; so was his wife. The Lord said to Him, “I have made thee a father of many nations” and he believed God. As old as he was, coupled with the fact that his wife had stopped producing eggs as she had now reached menopause and passed it - if there is something as such, he believed God and God was pleased with him. Romans 4:22 says, “And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.”

NOTE: No matter how impossible it may seem, if it is coming from God don’t doubt it. Remember, doubt is an insult to God’s personality.

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STILL CONNECTED?

MEMORY VERSE: For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. 1 Kings 11:4

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Acts 15-16

The Lord loved Solomon, and He did not hide it. From the name He gave to this boy, Jedidah meaning beloved of the Almighty, it was obvious that the good Lord loved him. Solomon too loved the Lord with all his heart. One of the ways of expressing love is through giving. John 3:16 says, “for God so LOVED the world , that he GAVE his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Solomon, out of his love, gave an offering no man had ever given before. 1 Kings 3:4 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.” Because he gave an offering no man had ever given before, the Lord gave him something He had never given to anyone before that day. He gave the young king a blank cheque. He told Solomon, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” He could have asked for anything. Had he asked for great wealth, the good Lord would have given it to him. Had he asked for the life of his enemy, he would have gotten it but he asked for an understanding heart to judge God’s people. Impressed by his request, the Lord gave him an understanding heart and things he didn’t ask for – honour and riches. As long as he was connected to God (his Source ) obeying and pleasing Him, his wisdom kept on increasing. He spoke 3,000 proverbs and 1,005 songs (1 Kings 4:32). The Lord kept on blessing him and it rubbed off on the whole nation. 2 Chronicles 9:27 says, “And the king made silver in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar trees made he as the sycomore trees that are in the low plains in abundance.”

All of a sudden, his wealth started to dwindle. It dwindled to a point where he had to tax his people to keep up with his extravagant lifestyle. He increased the tax from time to time to keep his head above water. At his death, the tax was so high that the people of Isreal complained. 1 Kings 12:4 says, “Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.” What happened to Solomon? How did he loose all that wealth? He got disconnected from his Source. John 15:5 says, “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: FOR WITHOUT ME YE CAN DO NOTHING.” Solomon left God and began to worship strange gods.1 Kings 11:4 says, “For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.” Friend, the reason why things have suddenly become so difficult for you could be that you are now disconnected from the Source. The reason why you no longer dream dreams or hear from the Lord could be that you are now disconnected from the Source of revelations. The reason why you minister and the Spirit of the Lord no longer moves as He is used to could be that you are now disconnected from your Source. It is high time you looked inward. It is high you took a look at your life. Working harder will not change your situation if you are disconnected from your Source.

QUESTION: Are you still connected? Are there any secret sins you are yet to confess and repent of? Are you now living in Egypt – a land of compromise?

NOTE: It’s not too late. Retrace your steps back and put things right.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

OF HIM SHALL BE MUCH REQUIRED

MEMORY VERSE: And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul. Deuteronomy 10:12

 

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Peter 1-3

God is love (1 John 4:8). John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” However, He does not love all equally. The same God who created Jacob and Esau said: “Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated (Romans 9:13).” He loved Jacob more than Esau. Joseph had two sons: Manasseh (senior) and Ephraim (junior). He took them to his father,Jacob, for prayer. He put Manasseh, the older one, at his father’s right hand and Ephraim, the younger one, at his father’s left hand. When it was time to pray, the old man crossed his hands, and put his right hand on Ephraim, the younger one, and his left hand on Manasseh, the older one. When Joseph saw this, he was displeased. He tried to move his father’s hand from Ephraim to Manasseh but the old man refused. Genesis 48:19 says, “And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations.” The Lord loved these two boys but He loved Ephraim more than Manasseh. 

The measure of love He dishes out to individuals varies. For example, Jesus Christ said, “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day (John 6:44).” You are in Christ today because the Lord, out of His great love, drew you to Him. The same message you heard that made you give your life to Christ, others heard it and continued in their life of sin. Out of the several billions on the face of the planet today, He drew you to Christ. This is a proof that you are in receipt of a greater measure of His love. He drew you to Christ to give you a glorious future (Isaiah 3:10). He drew you to Christ to turn your shame into glory. Colossians 1:27b says, “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” He drew you to Christ so that you will reign with His son in Heaven (. John 3:3-5). The more the measure of love He dishes out to a fellow, the more the amount of love He expects back from the fellow.  Luke 12:48 says, “But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.” The Lord is beginning to pour out of His love in great measure to some of us. He is beginning to use some of us in various ways – ways beyond our wildest dreams. He is beginning to open doors to some of us. He is beginning to turn our lives around. He expects us to reciprocate those love back to Him.  Deuteronomy 10:12 says, “And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul.” The Lord loved Solomon and blessed him. When he asked for wisdom, the Lord gave Him wisdom and riches. What did Solomon do? He reciprocated that love back to God. He offered a sacrifice of 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep and goats (2 Chronicles 6:42). Ephraim,on the other hand, did not reciprocate it back. Instead, he began to follow after idols and the Lord abandoned him (Hosea 4:17). 

NOTE: If for one reason or the other, maybe due to sin,  He has turn His attention away from you, there is still something you can do. You can repent,  rededicate your life to Christ and start afresh. Judah became His favourite because Reuben, Simeon and Levi misbehaved badly. But one day, the whole Israel sinned and Moses said "whoever is on the Lord’s side come to me". Only the children of Levi went to him (Exodus 32:26). From that day, the Lord drew Levi back to Himself. Only Levi was allowed to come near the ark of God. If you demonstrate your love to Him, He will draw you to Himself. 

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world

PRESERVED BY FOCUS

MEMORY VERSE: Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrew 12:2

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Haggai

Vision (the ability to see) is very important. Why? The man who cannot see will inevitably end up in a ditch. Matthew 15:14 says, “Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.” What a man sees can either make him or break him. For instance, Isaiah “saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple” and that changed him (Isaiah 6). Isaiah, like many of us, used his environment as a yardstick to measure his holiness. Whenever a man uses his environment or people fornicating and committing adultery around him as a yardstick to measure his holiness, he will always come out very holy. On that faithful day, he saw his holiness and God’s holiness and cried “woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5). That singular event turned him into a broken man for the Lord. What John, a very hard man, very violent, nicked named son of thunder by Jesus (Mark 3:17), saw in Revelations 1 broke him completely. Revelations 1: 17 says “And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last.”

However, what David saw in 2 Samuel 11 almost destroyed him. When David was meant to be at war fighting the Lord’s battle, he tarried back at home and slept. When he woke up, he saw a naked woman bathing and that was it. He committed adultery with her and killed the husband to hide the truth. What you see is important, but more important is what you focus on. Two people can see the same thing but focus on two different things. The twelve spies Moses sent to Canaan saw the same thing - the land of Canaan, the big fruits of Canaan, the men of Canaan, etc- but focused on different things (Numbers 13&14). Ten of them focused on the size of the men of Canaan and the other two focused on the word of God and God Himself. What the ten focused on informed their confession. Numbers 13:33 says, “And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.” What the ten focused on informed their decision and actions. Numbers 14:4 says, “And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.” All these led to their destruction. Numbers 14:30-30 says, “Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun. But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.” Do you know that what you focus on, at times, informs your dreams when you sleep? If you spend the whole day watching horror movies and all that, don’t be surprised if you sleep and find strange creatures chasing after you in your dreams. Or if you indulge in pornography, don’t be surprised if you sleep and find yourself making love to strange people in your dream. Ecclesiastes 5:3 says, “For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words.” Your focus will preserve you. What kept Jesus going despite the rejections He received was His focus. Luke 23:18 says, "And they cried out all at once, saying, Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas." The bible records “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame” (Hebrew 12:2). What made Jesus say “Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42), was His focus. If you focus on your present situation you will be discouraged, and if care is not taken you may fall into sin. Focus on the promises of God for your life, as recorded in the bible, and you will be greatly encouraged. What will keep you going during times of trial is your focus.

NOTE: If you focus on the work to be done to achieve something you will be discouraged, but if you focus on the rewards on completion of that task, you will be strengthened.

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Bro Samuel | Reaching the world