And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. ~ Ephesians 6:17 REFERENCE Ephesians 6:14-17 Bible knowledge in your head is not a sword against the devil. It must be a word that is alive within you. So how does the Word on the pages of scripture become a spiritual sword in your hands? When you do with it what Jesus did with it, when He looked at the devil and said, “It is written.” When you speak out the scripture in faith, believing and knowing that it is...
Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits. – Psalm 103:2 REFERENCE Psalm 103:1-5 When you take a look at your life sometimes, you see someone who is committed to serving God but who doesn’t have the ‘commensurate results’ to show for it. Things have not worked out the way you planned; you’ve had setbacks and delays, and it seems like things are spiraling down. In this state, the devil tries to toy with your mind to think ‘nothing is happening in your life and ‘nothing good can happen for you. It is a...
The sick man answered Him, 'Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.' ~ John 5:7 REFERENCE John 5:1-9 Truth be told, a lot of us, like the sick man in this passage, have had to mutter these same words under our breath or even out loud. We all get to that point when we wish somebody was there for us to pull the next strings for us, to cover for us or to help us out. For some...
And they rose at twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians; and when they had come to the outskirts of the Syrian camp, to their surprise no one was there. – II Kings 7:5 REFERENCE II Kings 7:3-8 The Israelites were experiencing a severe famine because their enemy besieged their land until it became empty. As a result, there was hunger, death, frustration and hopelessness all over the city. However, these four lepers did the unimaginable by rising up and going to the camp of the enemy. Little did they know that God will magnify...
He also brought them out with silver and gold, And there was none feeble among His tribes. ~ Psalm 105:37 REFERENCE Psalm 105:37-45 Much more than what God gave to the children of Israel when He brought them out of captivity in Egypt is what He wants you to have as a believer. His will is for you to come out from the land of not enough. The land of begging and borrowing. The land of squatting in people’s houses. The land of looking to others to meet your needs. The land of working but gathering little. The...
Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 'Jeremiah, what do you see?' And I said, 'I see a branch of an almond tree.' ~ Jeremiah 1:11 REFERENCE Jeremiah 1:4-12 Seeing is everything – the only time Jesus ministered to someone twice was a case where He wanted the person to receive his sight (ability to see). When your sight is dim, you make wrong choices, your progress is impeded, and you become fearful and uncertain of the future. Sure enough, the devil will like you to grope about blindly, unable to make a headway in...
Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? ~ Matthew 6:27 REFERENCE Matthew 6:25-34 The fact that Jesus repeats over and again that believers should not worry in this passage, shows how important He considers the issue. So many of you reading this devotional would have heard this same message severally; however it is worth reiterating because many still labor under the influence of ‘worry’. Worry plagues your mind with questions you don’t have answers to. Asking you… HOW? WHEN? WHERE? WHAT? all in an attempt to put you in an uncomfortable position and...
Careful planning puts you ahead in the long run; hurry and scurry puts you further behind. ~ Proverbs 21:5 (MSG) REFERENCE Proverbs 21:5-6 Foresight is the ability to think ahead or to look ahead and make the necessary plans to survive the future. Any believer who wants to prosper must cultivate this wisdom. To succeed, you have to PLAN! PLAN!! PLAN!!! Success never happens by accident, it is deliberate and calculated efforts that birth it. Amidst other factors, financial planning is also a prerequisite to your prosperity; and if you don’t plan (budget) on how you spend whatever...
May He remember all your offerings, and accept your burnt sacrifice. - Psalm 20:3 REFERENCE Psalm 20:1-5 One of the Hebrew names of God is ‘Jehovah G’molah’ – the God of recompense and reward. He doesn’t forget like man does (Isaiah 49:15). He is the administrator of seed time, harvest and due season. He makes sure every seed sown bears an appropriate and befitting harvest. He does not only reward financially; He will also reward your decision to serve Him, just like He rewarded Daniel’s decision not to defile himself, and Moses’ decision to forsake the pleasures of...
For instance, there was Joseph, the one the apostles nicknamed Barnabas (which means “Son of Encouragement) -Acts 4:36b (NLT) REFERENCE Acts 4: 32-37; 9:26-28 & 11:22-26 How does it feel to get an award or to be rewarded for something you have done well? How does it feel to be recognized for every effort you put into doing the right thing? How will you feel if every day, everybody around you said good things to you? Today, we live in a world where everybody tends to be harsh; finances are hard, everybody seems so stressed up and they...