OBEY AND BE BLESSED!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

FRIDAY MARCH 10, 2023.

SUBJECT: OBEY AND BE BLESSED!

Memory verse: "If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land." (Isaiah 1 vs 19.)

READ: Deuteronomy 30 vs 15 - 16: 

30:15: See, I have set before You today life and good, death and evil, 

30:16: in that I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgements, that you may live and multiply, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess.

INTIMATION:

Being obedient is submitting to authority; to comply with orders—the practice of doing what one is told. Obedience to God is doing the will of God, and willingness to forsake all that are outside God’s will. True obedience is willingness to obey commands from the heart. Heartless obedience of law is worthless before God. His laws are written in the Bible and are clearly evident in the world around us. Obeying them is reasonable, sensible, and beneficial. We could expect blessings when we conduct ourselves according to the moral principles of God. The most difficult part of obeying God’s laws is simply deciding to start now.

Not being obedient is, in my considered opinion, disagreeing with God, and consequently, refusing to access the promises and blessings of God. The Scripture likened disobedience to rebellion and stubbornness to God. Rebellion and stubbornness are serious sins. They involve far more than being independent and strong-minded. Scriptures equates them with divination (witchcraft) and idolatry (First Samuel 15 vs 23). 

Rebellion against God is, perhaps, the most serious sin of all because as long as a person rebels, he or she closes the door of forgiveness and restoration with God. Christians today always make rituals of going to church, taking communion, serving in units, paying tithes etc. But these activities are empty if our reasons for doing them are selfish. God doesn't want these sacrifices and offerings without an attitude of devotion (obedience) to Him. 

The prophet Samuel told Saul, "To obey is better than sacrifice" (First Samuel 15 vs 22). All we should do is to give God the obedience and lifelong service He desires from us, and the promises of God and the provisions thereto, are all ours.

The Christian rituals are not bribes to make God overlook our character faults. All God wants is our sincere faith and devotion. The Christian rituals ought to be outward sign of an inward faith in God. Many today have come to place more faith in the rituals of their religion than in God they worship. God does not take pleasure in your outward expressions if your inward faith is missing (Hosea 6 vs 6). Though religious rituals can help people understand God and nourish their relationship with Him, but they are helpful only if it is carried out with an attitude of love and obedience to God.

Have you ever said you would obey God if you know what He wanted? Have you ever complained that obedience is too difficult for a mere human? These are unacceptable excuses. All God’s laws are good, and are for our benefit in obedience (See Deuteronomy 28 vs 1 - 13). The strength to obey comes from our relationship with God, who is also the source of our strength for; “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4 vs 13). The power we receive in union with Christ is sufficient to do His Will and to face all challenges that arise from our commitment to doing it. 

Prayer: Abba Father, trust and obedience to Your Word is the only access to Your promises and provisions. Strengthen me, O Lord, with the spirit of raw obedience to You and Your Word, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

God Cares for You

Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:6–7)

Why is anxiety about the future a form of pride?

God’s answer would sound something like this (paraphrasing Isaiah 51:12):

I — the Lord, your Maker — I am he who comforts you, who promises to take care of you; and those who threaten you are mere men who die. So, your fear must mean that you do not trust me — and even though you are not sure that your own resources will take care of you, yet you opt for fragile self-reliance, rather than faith in my future grace. So, all your trembling — weak as it is — reveals pride.

The remedy? Turn from self-reliance to God-reliance, and put your faith in the all-sufficient power of the promise of his future grace.

You can see that anxiety is a form of pride in 1 Peter 5:6–7. Notice the grammatical connection between the verses. “Humble yourselves . . . under the mighty hand of God . . . [now, verse 7] casting all your anxieties on him.” Verse 7 is not a new sentence. It’s a subordinate clause. It starts with a participle: “Humble yourselves . . . [by] casting all your anxieties on him.”

This means that casting your anxieties on God is a way of humbling yourself under God’s mighty hand. It’s like saying, “Eat politely . . . chewing with your mouth shut.” Or, “Drive carefully . . . keeping your eyes on the road.” Or, “Be generous . . . inviting someone over on Thanksgiving.” Or, “Humble yourselves . . . casting your fears on God.”

One way to humble ourselves is to cast all our anxieties on God. Which means that one hindrance to casting your anxieties on God is pride. Which means that undue worry is a form of pride. No matter how weak it looks or feels.

Now, why is casting our anxieties on the Lord the opposite of pride? Because pride does not like to admit that it has any anxieties. Or that we can’t take care of them ourselves. And if pride has to admit that its fears are unmanagable, it still does not like to admit that the remedy might be trusting someone else who is wiser and stronger. 

In other words, pride is a form of unbelief and does not like to trust in God for his future grace. Faith, on the other hand, admits the need for help. Pride won’t. Faith banks on God to give help. Pride won’t. Faith casts anxieties on God. Pride won’t. 

Therefore, the way to battle the unbelief of pride is to admit freely that you have anxieties, and to cherish the promise of future grace in the words, “He cares for you.” And then unload your fears onto his strong shoulders.

TRIALS IN THE FIRES OF HARD TIMES!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY MARCH 08, 2023.

SUBJECT: TRIALS IN THE FIRES OF HARD TIMES!

Memory verse: "So that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure,” (Second Thessalonians 1 vs 4.) 

READ: James 1 vs 2 - 4; First Peter 1 vs 6 - 8:

James 1:2:My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 

1:3: knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 

1:4: But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

First Peter 1:6: in this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials,

1:7: that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 

1:8: whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory:

INTIMATION:

Fires of hard times are the life’s difficulties we experience as we live for Christ. All believers face trials when they let their light shine into the darkness. They will experience troubles because they are trying to be God’s people in a perverse world. Believers must understand, therefore, that life’s trial is an occasion for joy when it comes as a result of one’s commitment in Christ. We must accept trials as part of the refining process that burns away impurities and prepares us to meet Christ. We must also understand that the many trials are occasions for spiritual growth and development of character. 

Since God uses Satan’s work against him, then trials or persecution manifests that God is going to use Satan’s work to accomplish something that is good in the life every believer (Romans 8 vs 28). We should note that the candidates for heaven must be tried in the fires of hard times in order to prepare their characters for eternal dwelling. As gold is heated, impurities float to the top and can be skimmed off. Likewise, our trials, struggles, and persecutions refine and strengthen our faith, making us useful to God. Then we can count it all joy when we have to endure many trials. 

Instead of asking, “Why me?” we should respond to suffering with a new sets of responses: (1) Confidence that God knows, plans, and directs our lives for our good. It’s hard to calculate sometimes, but God always provides His love and strength for us. He leads us toward a better future. (2) Perseverance when facing grief, anger, sorrow, and pain. We express our grief, but we don’t give in to bitterness and despair. (3) Courage because with Jesus as our Brother and Savior, we need not be afraid. He who suffered for us will not abandon us. Jesus carries us through everything. 

The key of surviving life’s difficulties is in patience, faith and joy in the Lord. When faced with crushing troubles, we should have faith in God because it pleases Him, and be patient, for God uses our trials for our good and for His glory, knowing that God will not forsake His people (Deuteronomy 4 vs 31). The godly life in Christ brings about persecution because Satan will rise up against all that God represents in this world. God is fair and just, and will give us patience in our suffering because He has not forgotten us. In His perfect timing, He will relieve our suffering and punish those who persecute us. 

The apostle Paul said in Romans 5 vs 3 - 4; “And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance, and perseverance, character, and character, hope.” Paul tells us that in the future we will become, but until then we must overcome. This means that we will experience difficulties that will help us grow. We rejoice in suffering, not because we like pain or deny its tragedy, but because we know God is using life’s difficulties and Satan’s attacks to build our character. The problems we run into will develop our perseverance, which in turn will strengthen our character, deepen our trust in God, and give us greater confidence about the future.

Your troubles may be an indication that you are taking a stand for Christ. When you do so, you are experiencing the privilege of showing that you are worthy of God’s kingdom (Second Thessalonians 1 vs 11). As believers, our calling from God is to become like Christ; be patient in suffering, and have faith in God to actualize, at the long run, His purposes in our lives. Becoming like Christ is a gradual, lifelong process that will be completed when we see Christ face to face (First John 3 vs 2). 

Some people say that troubles are the result of sin or lack of faith, but they may be a part of God’s plan for believers. Our problems can help us look upward and forward, instead of inward (Philippians 3 vs 13 - 14), they can build strong character, and they can provide us with opportunities to comfort others who also are struggling (Second Corinthians 1 vs 3 - 5). We must acknowledge that the proving of testing of our faith produces a character that is able to endure trials. It is also an opportunity for our faith to be proved genuine and strengthened. 

As believers we should react to various trials and temptations that we all encounter in life with endurance, steadfastness, and patience. We are to let these things do a thorough work in us so that we will come through them stronger and better than we were before.

Prayer: Abba Father, in all things I give You thanks, knowing that Your thoughts for me is of good and not of evil, to give me a future and a hope. I will rejoice in any situations I find myself because I know my Redeemer lives. Endue me with the spirit of endurance, steadfastness, and perseverance in the face of life’s trials, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

BE CONTENT WITH WHAT YOU HAVE!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

WEDNESDAY MARCH 08, 2023.

SUBJECT: BE CONTENT WITH WHAT YOU HAVE!

Memory verse: "Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you." (Hebrews 13 vs 5.)

READ: Numbers 11 vs 4 - 6:

11:4: Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: “Who will give us meat to eat?

11:5: We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic;

11:6: but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!”

INTIMATION:

Be content with what you have, and be grateful to the Great Provider. Discontentment comes when your attention shifts from what you have to what you don't have. Relishing what you have engenders thankfulness. Resenting what you are missing brings about complaining and ingratitude, and such things are unpleasant to the Lord. When such happens you forget what God has done for you, and is wrapped up in what God hasn't done for you. Consequently, your attitude will make you lose your sense of gratitude and thanksgiving.

In the passage we read today, the Israelites murmured, and were dissatisfied with the immediate situation of lack of food which God has allowed in their lives. At the instance of that they forgot to give thanks to God for all He has done for them, and is still doing for them. They didn’t seem to notice what God was doing for them—setting them free, making them a nation, giving them a new land—because they were so wrapped up in what God hasn’t done for them. They could think of nothing but the delicious Egyptian food they left behind, forgetting that the brutal whip of Egyptian slavery, which the Lord had saved them from, was the cost of eating the food. 

We become satisfied when we realize God’s sufficiency for our needs, and be thankful to Him continually. When we are discontented with what we have, we are indirectly saying that God has been unfair to us or that He can’t take care of us—or at least that He won’t take care of us the way we want. That is doubting the integrity of God who already said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you,” and only Him can supply all our needs (Philippians 4 vs 19).

Contentment brings about happiness, and happiness is associated with an attitude of gratitude. Against this backdrop, let us self-evaluate ourselves by thinking of what occupies our attention most of the time. Are we content with what we have—grateful for what God has given us, or are we always thinking about what we would like to have? We should not allow our unfulfilled desires to cause us to forget God's gift of life, food, health, work, friends etc, and be thankful to Him.

In every circumstances we face in life we should be content with such things that we have, or what God is doing in our lives, and reasonably be thankful to Him. We should take a cue from the apostle Paul who knew how to be content, happy and rejoicing in the Lord whether he had plenty or whether he was in need. He said, “Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need” (Philippians 4 vs 11 - 12).

The secret of contentment lies in our knowing God, trusting in His promises, and drawing on His power for strength to face the challenges of life. He will supply all your needs, but in a way that He knows is best for us. It is important to note that “a man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.” (John 3 vs 27.) Therefore, be content and thankful for what God has given you at all times. You can only get more from Him if you are grateful and thankful for the one you already have.

Prayer: Abba Father, You are my Loving Father, and Faithful Companion. Endue me with the spirit of contentment in all things, knowing that You have promised that You will never leave me nor forsake me, and will supply all my needs according to Your riches in glory by Christ Jesus, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!

Latest Africa Praise by ClaudyGod

 

Open the Windows of Your Heart

 

A bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench. (Isaiah 42:3)

Probably the most encouraging words I have heard in weeks came from a prophecy in Isaiah 42:1–3 about how Jesus will use his spiritual power.

Do you feel like “a bruised reed” — like one of those big top-heavy Easter lilies whose stem has been squashed so that the flower flops to the ground and gets no sap? Do you ever feel like your faith is just a little spark instead of a flame — like that little red dot at the end of the wick after you blow out the birthday candle?

Take heart! The Spirit of Christ is the Spirit of encouragement: he will not snap off your flower; he will not snuff out your spark.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me . . . to proclaim good news to the poor” (Luke 4:18). “The sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings” (Malachi 4:2). “[He is] gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29). “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” (Psalm 27:14).

It may be a grief to us that we are only a spark instead of a flaming fire. But listen! And be encouraged: Yes, there is a big difference between a spark and a fire. But there is an infinite difference between a spark and no spark! A mustard seed of faith is infinitely closer to being a mountain of faith than it is to being no faith.

Open the window of God’s promises and let the Spirit blow into every room of your heart. The Holy Wind of God will not break or quench. He will lift up your head and fan your spark into a flame. He is the Spirit of encouragement.

How Can I Be Filled with the Spirit?

 

Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. (Romans 15:4)

How can we be filled with the Holy Spirit? How can we experience an outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon our church and ourselves that fills us with indomitable joy and frees us, and empowers us, to love those around us in ways so authentic that they are won to Christ?

Answer: Meditate day and night upon the incomparable, hope-giving promises of God. As Romans 15:4 shows us, that’s the way Paul kept his heart full of hope and joy and love. “Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”

The full assurance of hope comes from meditating on the promises of God’s word. And this does not contradict the sentence nine verses later that says that the Holy Spirit gives us hope (Romans 15:13). This is because the Holy Spirit is the divine author of Scripture. His word is the means of his work. It is no contradiction that the way he fills us with hope is by filling us with his own word of promise.

Hope is not some vague emotion that comes out of nowhere, like a stomachache. Hope is the confidence that the stupendous future promised to us by the word of the Spirit is going to really come true. Therefore, the way to be filled with the Spirit is to be filled with his word. The way to have the power of the Spirit is to believe the promises of his word.

For it is the word of promise that fills us with hope, and hope fills us with joy, and joy overflows in the power and freedom to love our neighbor. And that is the fullness of the Holy Spirit.