KEEPING A DISTANCE FROM SIN Tuesday 1 March
MEMORIZE: “A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident.” (Prov. 14:16).
Another way to identify a wise person is by his or her attitude to sin. A wise fellow keeps a healthy distance from sin. The distance between you and anything or anyone capable of bringing you into sin will tell whether you are wise or not. 1 Thessalonians 5:22 says, “Abstain from all appearance of evil”. It takes wisdom to obey this scripture. If your weakness is women, it is wisdom to deliberately avoid being alone in a lady’s company—always insist on having a third party around. If your worldly friends have a very strong influence over you, you should be wise enough to keep them at bay. If your effort at the Christian faith is regularly being rubbished by your addiction to unhealthy television programs and internet sites, cut them off. Any old or new relationship that does not add to you spiritually, must be…
IGNORANT? Monday 28 February
MEMORIZE: “How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? And the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?” (Prov. 1:22).
READ: Proverbs 1:22-23
“I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan” (Rev. 2:9).
In His letter to the church at Smyrna, the Lord said He was aware of their poverty, yet they were rich. This could mean several things. It could mean that they were impoverished because they did not know that they were rich. In this case, ignorance was a crucial factor. Even today, many believers are living far below Heaven’s level of provision because they do not know their due or do not believe its bounteousness. Hence, Hosea 4:6 says many are destroyed for lack of knowledge. The word of God contains virtually all truths to guide us into success in every area of life, but how many people devo…
EXTRAORDINARY MERCY Sunday 27 February
MEMORIZE: “For he shall have judgement without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgement.” (James 2:13)
READ: James 2:12-13
In 1 Samuel 1:12-17, after Hannah received an unusual approval from a backslidden priest. Immediately, she stopped praying and fasting; she brightened up, was joyful and became expectant. There are times when you touch Heaven by your persistent intercession. There are days when your acts and seeds provoke a response from Heaven. At such times, prayer and fasting no longer be necessary. May you connect with your day of favour in Jesus name.
Another sign of your day of favour is that you can enjoy unusual mercy. It is a terrible thing to come under God’s judgement. God hates unbelief and doubt with a passion; hence, Hebrews 11:6 says it is impossible to please God without believing in Him. When God was about to reverse the famine in Samaria in 2 Kings 7:1-20, he spoke through Elisha that ther…
MIRIAM WAS FOCUSED Saturday 26 February
MEMORIZE: “Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.” (Psalm 121:4).
READ: Psalm 121:3-4
God often starts where your efforts are exhausted. It is okay to take steps to protect yourself as long as you do not put your trust in those very steps. It is also important to do every legitimate thing you can, to protect yourself. For instance, the world will be facing its greatest nightmare during the Great Tribulation; hence, in Isaiah 26:20-21, God calls His people to secure themselves so that they are not affected. If baby Moses was not protected, he would have been consumed in the mass destruction of male children in Egypt. Anyone who refuses to accept Christ, become born again and begin to live a righteous life should prepare to go through the worst suffering ever recorded in the history of mankind. Have you taken relevant steps to deliver yourself?
IS YOUR FAMINE PROVOKED? Friday 25 February
MEMORIZE: “Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David enquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, it is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites.” (2 Sam. 21:1).
READ: 2 Samuel 21:1-6
Besides spiritual famines, there are physical famines. Usually, these are economy-based. In the Bible, we have at least 11 famines recorded. It is interesting to note that patriarchs such as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Elijah, Elisha, and even Paul witnessed famines. These famines had different intensity and durations. There are however, vital lessons for us from these documented cases. For example, the famine during the days of David shows that famines are provoked and can sometimes be mitigated when atonement is made.
According to one account, King Saul, out of zeal, killed some peace loving, but tricky, Gibeonites, whom the Israelites had earlier covenanted to protect during the days of J…
MEMORIZE: “That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises” (Heb. 6:12).
READ: Genesis 37:5-11
“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee” (Isaiah 60:1). The Lord wants you to arise because there is a link between time and destiny. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:”. One’s destiny in God is expected to be realized within a specified time. God has a timetable for every one and for every event. Unfortunately, because God’s timetable is at variance with ours, many of us tend to neglect it. A young and very zealous brother, who had the opportunity to hear very clearly from God, received very wonderful promises in his teens. Forty years after, he is still expecting God to fulfil them. He had waited impatiently on the Lord for several years, now he has learnt to wait patiently on God. If…
WHAT EXAMPLE? Wednesday 23 February
MEMORIZE: “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope” (Rom. 15:4).
READ: 2 Kings 5:20-27
Of all the vessels in God’s house, golden vessels stand out. Paul was such a vessel; God performed uncommon miracles through him (Acts 19:11-12). If you are a wooden or silver vessel, you can move up to become a golden vessel by taking your personal consecration to the limits. Loving God supremely, taking the greatest risks for God’s Kingdom, obeying God in everything, and living for God’s maximum pleasure, are the other ways to stand out as a vessel in the house of God. This season, the Lord will help you to become a golden vessel in His hands in Jesus name.
Recently, we experienced a dramatic miracle. During the Special Holy Ghost Service in March, the Lord instructed me to tie some cloths to one of the shirts that I wore during the December Congre…
WATCH YOUR WORKS! Tuesday 22 February
MEMORIZE: “Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.” (2 John 8).
READ: 2 John 8-9
To sustain your Christian life, you must watch against the wind of false doctrine blowing across the world in these end times. Some people teach that God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are one and the same person manifesting in different ways, and that as a result, you must be baptized only in the name of Jesus Christ. They say there is no need to pray to the Father in the name of Jesus Christ. Watch it! Another reason people move from the truth into falsehood is that while being taught the truth, they never got grounded. If you have a half-baked knowledge of God’s word, you are giving room to the enemy to fill you with false doctrines. If you see someone you know who was once in the truth but now preaches heresy, take to your heels. If you try to convince the fellow to return …
LIKE POLICARP? Monday 21 February
MEMORIZE: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13).
One crucial issue from the story of the city of Smyrna was how a city in ruins could turn into a beautiful city 300 years later. This tells us that no matter how long you have remained in your backslidden state, if you can take the step of repentance and return to the Lover of your soul today, you will be forgiven and restored. A lesson from the story of this city is the killing of Policarp, the Bishop of Smyrna. The Jews in Smyrna were quite hostile to the church. When Policarp was 86, some persecutors surrounded him and tied him to a stake, preparing to set him ablaze. He was to be spared only if he recanted his faith and denied Christ. However, he replied that if the Lord had been faithful to him for the past 86 years, why should he deny Him now? In their fury, they set him ablaze, but he did not burn. Then in an…
UNUSUAL APPROVAL Sunday 20 February
MEMORIZE: “For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” (Ps. 30:5).
READ: 1 Samuel 1:12-17
One of the ways of discerning your day of favour is when you receive an unusual approval. One person who got an unusual approval was Hannah. She travelled to Shiloh every year without much to show for it. Yet, she persisted until that glorious day. Her situation moved her to the point of praying differently. Though her lips moved, her voice was inaudible. Initially, Eli the priest thought she was drunk, but on realizing that she was sane, and only appeared drunk by reason of her intense burden and prayer, he endorsed her request with his priestly authority. She conceived at long last!
Why was this an unusual approval? Eli was old and had lost his ability to discern spiritual things. This was why he mistook a woman who was deep in prayer for a drunk. His spiritual dullness p…
MEMORIZE: “The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of God.” (Prov. 21:31).
“And when she could no longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink” (Ex. 2:3). The story of the birth of Moses is quite an interesting one. We learn from this story that in every divine assignment, God has His part and you have yours. God expects you to do yours before He does His. Here, Jochebed, Moses’, mother, hid the baby Moses for a period until it was no longer safe to do so. In other words, she exhausted her efforts. God may expect you to exhaust your efforts before He takes over. Your failure to do what you should can delay divine intervention. Until you exhaust your efforts, God may refuse to show up. To get an answer on that nagging issue, you can pray some more. You can fast some more. Y…
YOU CAN PROVOKE GOD Friday 18 February
MEMORIZE: “The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.” (Lam. 3:25)
Another cause of spiritual famine is over familiarity with God and His Word. Some people, particularly leaders in the Christian community, have become so familiar with God’s Word that they no longer take it seriously. If this continues, spiritual famine is inevitable. Are you ignoring divine communication? It shows you are over familiar with God or His Word. When some people hear too many of ‘Thus says the Lord’, they are never moved even when such comes from God’s genuine prophet. “And I have put my word in thy mouth, and I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou art my people” (Isaiah 51:16). God does not send His Word just for fun but for a specific purpose. If God’s purpose for sending His Word to you is not achieved, it…
ARE ALL BOYS FATHERS? Thursday 17 February
MEMORIZE: “After this lived Job an hundred and forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, even four generations.” (Job 42:16).
After Job’s trial, he had a great ending. It is commonly believed by Bible scholars that he was about 70 years at the time of his trial, and thereafter, God added to him 140 more years. Not many people are so blessed to see their children’s children—the second generation—but Job saw four generations of his lineage just because he was wise and righteous. Wisdom adds to the years of the wise. On the other hand, sin and foolishness takes from the foolish. In Judges 16:28-30, Samson died prematurely—in his prime. His self-will and foolishness robbed him of valuable years! The difference between Job and Samson was that the former had wisdom while the later lacked it. Wisdom prolongs life while wickedness reduces it.
At the birth of baby boy, people would say, ‘Here comes a future father’, but…
NOT UNTO DEATH Wednesday 16 February
MEMORIZE: “When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the son of God might be glorified thereby.” (John 11:4)
READ: John 11:1-4
God’s vessels of honour are used in making statements in the world. Sometimes, He can use some vessels to reveal His ability to make the impossible possible. He can also use some to demonstrate His ability to reverse the irreversible. When His friend Lazarus was sick, and He was informed in John 11:1-44, Jesus kept His cool and stayed back for four days. Many people would want to know why He did that to His friend. It was simply because the Lord wanted to use Lazarus to tell the world that no matter how bad a matter had degenerated, it could still be reversed if only He is brought into the picture. If you were left like Lazarus in a bad situation that was getting worse, it would not have been funny at all. Lazarus died and was buried. He was already stinking. Not …
MAKING PARENTS JOYFUL? Tuesday 15 February
MEMORIZE: “Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise ;)” (Eph. 6:2).
READ: Ephesians 6:1-3
A wise person can be identified by his or her attitude to correction. Another way of identifying the wise is by discerning his ability to give joy to his or her parents. Proverbs 10:1 says, “The Proverbs of Solomon: A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother”. Your ability to always make your father happy makes you a wise child. One exemplary case here is our Lord Jesus Christ. He was a joy to be with at all times. According to Luke 2:40-52, He was missing from the company of His parents one day and they were plunged into sorrow. “And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart” (Luke 2:51). As a twelve-year-old, Jesus was totally obedient to His parents. A child that completely submits to his or her …
MEMORIZE: “Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me.” (Micah 7:8)
Of the seven churches the Lord wrote letters to, only two passed His assessment. The church at Smyrna was one of them. The Lord had nothing against them. May the Lord help you to a point where He will find nothing against you. A look at the history of Smyrna shows that it was founded, then destroyed, then rebuilt. The new rebuilt city was extremely beautiful. One of the finest of all Asian cities then, it was referred to as the ‘ornament’, ‘crown’ or ‘flower’ of Asia. One of its streets was called ‘street of gold’. It proudly harboured a stadium, a public library and a home of music. Several idols such as Zeus, Apollo and Aphrodite had their temples there. Smyrna was a trading city and there were several influential Jews there. This magnificent city was really a beehive …
WHERE’S YOUR SPIKENARD? Sunday 13 February
MEMORIZE: “Verily I say unto you, wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her” (Mrk. 14:9).
READ: Mark 14:3-9
One way of knowing that your time of favour has come is when God gives you unusual opportunities. For King Solomon, God gave him the unusual opportunity to ask for whatever he wanted in a dream. “In that night did God appear unto Solomon, and said unto him, Ask what I shall give thee” (2 Chron. 1:7). However, that opportunity did not just come on its own. It was provoked by Solomon’s sacrifice of a thousand burnt offerings in one night. This simply tells us that there are things you can do to hasten or provoke your day of favour. Giving extraordinarily can trigger your favour. Unfortunately, many who are asking God for their day of favour are still holding back. Do you know that if Solomon had not given that landmark offering, he would no…
HEIGHTS, SIGHT AND POSSESSIONS Saturday 12 February
MEMORIZE: “For all the land which thou seest , to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.” (Gen. 13:15).
READ: Genesis 13:14-15
Perception is necessary for discovery and recovery. What you see determines what you get. If you cannot ‘see’ divine healing in the Bible, but just read about it, you may never experience it. So many believers have heard of divine healing but very few have experienced it because they cannot ‘see’ the true picture as presented in God’s Word. In Genesis 13:14-15, God told Abraham to take the look of his life; just one look and whatever he saw became his. If you were asked to take that one life-changing look, what will you do? You would climb to a very high mount, get a vantage point that guarantees the best view, before you take that look. If you were on a mountain top, you would have a great view and as a result greater possessions than if you were in a valley. In the same way, your spiritual level determines …
FELLOWSHIP AND FAMINE Friday 11 February
MEMORIZE: “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shall meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” (Josh. 1:8)
READ: Acts 13:1-3
Apart from incomplete obedience and carnality, spiritual famine can also be caused by a neglect of the word. Joshua 1:8 says, “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shall meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” Do you know one major reason why God gave this instruction to Joshua was to prevent spiritual famine?
According to this scripture, your heart, mouth, deeds and their results are all linked together. If your heart is saturated with God’s Word, it would spill out thr…
CHANGEABILITY OF DESTINY Thursday 10 February
MEMORIZE: “For by me thy days shall be multiplied, and the years of thy life shall be increased.” (Prov. 9:11).
In 1 Samuel 2:30, God, who had earlier purposed to eternally choose priests from the family of Eli, rescinded His decision. May God not alter His good purposes and plans for your life in Jesus name. One lesson from this is that destiny is changeable. In mathematics, we call this variable constant, which refers to something that is fixed yet subject to change on introduction of a particular factor. An example here is death. Hebrews 9:27 says everyone has an appointment with death, yet the date of that appointment can be changed – either moved forward or backward. Proverbs 10:27 says, “The fear of the LORD prolongeth days: but the years of the wicked shall be shortened”. This means, if God says you will live for 70 years and you fear Him and are wise, you may live up to 80 years or more. In other words, one rea…
MEMORIZE: “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:10).
READ: Romans 10:13-15
God can use anyone. He does not discriminate. If you yield to Him, you will become a candidate of divine occupation. This year, the Lord will use you mightily in Jesus name. If you can simply obey God’s instructions, you will be dazed at the impact of your obedience. In Kingdom, there is a chain—a powerful network—that God wants sustained until Jesus comes. You are saved to save others. If we do this, by and by, the world will be reached for Christ.
ATTITUDE TO CORRECTION Tuesday 8 February
MEMORIZE:”Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: Teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.” (Prov. 9:9).
READ: Proverbs 9:7-9
Apart from identifying a wise person by who or what he learns from, he can also be known by his or her attitude to correction. Anyone who cannot be corrected cannot attain wisdom. According to today’s reading, if you find it difficult to love those who correct you, you are a scorner and a fool. A scorner takes offence when corrected, hence, the fellow often plans to revenge by disgracing the one who has corrected him. If that is your attitude towards correction, you are a fool. If people have cause to regret ever correcting you, it is because you are a scorner and a fool. A fool cannot be corrected. Some so-called believers prefer to relocate from their local assembly than to submit to the discipline of their pastor. Such an attitude shows that the fellow has not been truly broken. If you…
PARTAKING OF THE TREE OF LIFE? Monday 7 February
MEMORIZE: “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” (Rev. 2:7)
READ: Genesis 3:22-24
A lesson from Christ’s letter to the church at Ephesus is that having an ear is one thing, but hearing with it is another. Some people have ears but they are not better than those who do not have. In fact, there are those who have no ears but they ‘hear’ because they have an obedient heart and are ready to comply with instructions. What God is looking for as proof of having ears that hear, is your ability to heed what the Holy Spirit is saying. Any time you turn deaf ears to what God wants done, it shows that your ears are useless appendages, mere ornaments even. How functional are your ears? Some ears can hear every other sound except that of the Spirit. May the Lord from today open your ears to hear His voice.
Furt…
PRELIMINARY CALLING Sunday 6 February
MEMORIZE: “To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood:” (Gal. 1:16).
READ: Galatians 1:15-16
Ideally, to qualify for leadership positions in the church of God, you must first be called. Believers are ‘called-out’ people. You are first called out of sin and worldliness into God’s Kingdom. Until you genuinely respond to this preliminary call, you cannot taste the new birth. This makes you unfit to lead God’s people. Today, many who have not yet known the Lord give themselves big titles, claiming that God has commissioned them. The Lord is a Holy God. He will not appoint sinners. Until the problem of sin is settled, that individual remains unusable—his gifts, knowledge and earthly achievements notwithstanding.
“But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace, To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; im…
GRASSHOPPER MENTALITY Saturday 5 February
MEMORIZE: “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.” (Prov. 23:7).
READ: Romans 4:17-22
What you focus on, in any given situation, determines your outcome. Have you noticed that when you raise your eyes to look at something, you may be staring at several objects at the same time? Twenty people can face the same direction but no two will focus only on the same thing. This shows the need to look aright. May you focus only on what Heaven wants you to see always!
Numbers 13:33 says when the ten spies saw the giants, they saw themselves like grasshoppers. What they saw they eventually became. Although problems will come, never focus on them. Each time you set your heart on a problem, your worth diminishes and your God reduces in magnitude. Each time you focus on a problem, it increases in size and before long, it completely fills your vision. On the other hand, each time you focu…
CARNALITY AND FAMINE Friday 4 February
MEMORIZE:”Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be” (Rom. 8:7).
A possible cause of spiritual dryness in the lives of some people is their refusal to obey God completely. If you cannot see a difference between the Word of God and the words of men, you are not different from King Saul. Anytime there is some iota of disobedience in your attempt at obedience, your overall state is regarded by God as disobedience. If you want Heaven to accept your efforts as acts of righteousness, ensure they satisfy Heaven’s requirement a hundred percent.
In addition, carnality is another cause of spiritual dryness. “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the spirit the things of the spirit” (Rom. 8:5). A carnal Christian is mostly concerned with things that will gratify the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes and the pride…
MEMORIZE: “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Cor. 6:20).
READ: Luke 22:31-33
God is the greatest playwright. Unlike human playwrights, His scripts are so all-embracing that one way or another, every human being finds himself or herself fitting into one of the roles or characters. However, one interesting thing about this drama is that God can make changes right on stage. He can change the actor, scene or plot at will. For instance, Psalm 41:9 prophesied that a bosom friend of the Lord would betray Him. When the time came for that drama to be enacted, and Satan determined to use Peter as the betrayer, the Lord simply referred the matter to the Playwright and it was changed. In any way you were supposed to act a negative part in God’s drama, the Lord will reverse that role in your favour in Jesus name.