Category: Devotional

I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers! – Isaiah 65:24 NLT

In Genesis 37, the brothers of Joseph hated him so much that they threw him into a deep pit and were going to leave him there to die. But just then they saw a caravan of Ishmaelite merchants coming their way, and they decided to sell Joseph to them. What’s interesting is that trade caravan had been traveling for months on their way to sell their goods in Egypt. Long before Joseph was thrown into the pit, the answer was already on the way. Long before Joseph had the problem, GOD had the answer already set up.

GOD knows what you’re going to need, when you’re going to need it, and how to get it to you. The problem you’re worried about, GOD has the answer already en route. The vindication, the healing, or the breakthrough is already set up. When you’re tempted to worry, remember that everything you need to fulfill your destiny is right on schedule. It may not have happened yet, but what GOD has ordained is on the way.

LET’S PRAY
Everlasting Father, thank You that before I even ask You for my needs and desires, You’ve already lined them up and have them headed my way. Thank You for the people, the favour, and the promotion You’ve ordained to come across my path. I believe that even now, answers to my prayers are on the way in Jesus glorious name.

Fountain! Stay connected to Jesus Christ the Ultimate Source of Life to bear much fruits.

I will love You, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. Psalm 18:1–2

David had a deep relationship with God. In this Psalm, he expressed his intimate love for the Lord. After telling of his love for God, David used seven metaphors to describe how much God meant to him:

*• My Rock.* This represents an unshakeable ground or firm foundation. God was David’s unshakeable ground. Those who trust in the Lord cannot be moved.

*• My Fortress.* A fortress gave a city an advantage in times of battle. It was high above the ground and a place to hide and shoot arrows. The Lord is the fortress in whom we hide and fight our battles.

*• My Deliverer.* A deliverer is able to take you out of a trap you have fallen into. Even when we fall into the hands of the enemy, the Lord will deliver us.

*• My Strength.* The intensity of the battlefield has a way of sapping the strength out of a person. But David underscored the fact that the Lord was the source of his strength. When we place our trust in the Lord, He renews our strength like that of the eagle.

*• My Shield.* The Lord is the one who blocks the arrows of life from taking us out. They may be deployed against us, but they shall not prevail.

*• My Salvation.* Salvation includes the whole idea of well-being. The Lord makes our lives beautiful and complete.

*• My Stronghold.* The stronghold is the last place of refuge. It is where you stand when all else fails. David declared God as his final line of refuge and defence. That is who the Lord is to us.

May we trust in the Lord as deeply as David did.

*LET’S PRAY*
Everlasting Father, You are my source of help. By Your Mercy give me the grace to trust you deeply daily in everything with faith in my heart as my my stronghold in mighty name of Jesus Christ.

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.” John 10:27 – 30 NLT

Sheep are simple creatures surrounded by a very harsh world. In the days of Jesus, the sheep had predators such as wolves, bears and lions. In addition, there were thieves and robbers who came into the sheepfold to steal, kill or destroy the sheep. The sheep also had to contend with all kinds of life-threatening diseases in the field.
The method of the predators was to snatch the sheep from the shepherd. The thieves tried to trick the sheep by imitating the voice of the shepherd so that the sheep would be led astray. The sheep which followed the voice of the thieves got stolen from the shepherd.

Jesus used this analogy of the sheep and the shepherd to teach us about the kind of relationship that had to exist between us and Him. He is the shepherd; we are the sheep. As the sheep is threatened by so many enemies, we also have enemies who want to snatch us from the hand of the shepherd.

In a world with so many attractions, how do we as Christians stay close to the Lord and live our lives for Him?

• Know the voice of the Lord the Good Shepherd.
God speaks to us daily through the Bible, the Holy Spirit, and through His anointed servants who study and share God’s word with us. At least one time in every sermon, God breaks through the words of the preacher and speaks directly to the people. It may be in a single sentence or in just one phrase. Let’s pay attention to His voice. Let’s position ourselves to hear Him speak to us.

• Follow the Lord the Good Shepherd obediently.
When we hear God’s voice, we must do what He wants us to do. His word should not just be something we hear; it must also be something we do. We must act on His Word. We must put His Word into action.

• Trust in the Lord the Good Shepherd’s protection.
We must be assured that the Lord, our Shepherd, has the best plans for us. Even when we are not sure of where He is taking us, we must trust that His thoughts towards us are for good and not for evil to give us a future and a hope.

LET’S PRAY
Everlasting Father, connect my heart to Your Word and teach me to know your voice to follow your direction for my life as child follows his father in mighty name of Jesus Christ!

“Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever. Those who desert him will perish, for you destroy those who abandon you. But as for me, how good it is to be near God! I have made the Sovereign LORD my shelter, and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do. Psalm 73:25 – 28

A father was watching his young son try to dislodge a heavy stone. The boy couldn’t make the stone budge. “Are you sure you are using all your strength?” the father asked. “Yes, I am,” said the exasperated boy. “No, you are not,” the father replied. “You haven’t asked me to help you.”
Like this father, God also wants to get involved in our battles, but we have to ask Him to help us. He will not rudely jump into our affairs until we acknowledge His presence and call on Him. With God on your side, you are a majority.

Have you asked God for help? Have you really asked Him for strength to fight your battles? Sometimes we pray hard and long and depend on those to get us through. Other times, we seek out a ‘man of God’ or ‘woman of God’ to pray for us and place our confidence in their prayers. But in all these actions, where do we place our faith – in God or in man? Beloved, l say it again, with God on your side, you are a majority.

When you see yourself surrounded by people with formidable and frightening weapons set against you, don’t be afraid. Yes, they may have more than you have. Yes, they may know more than you know. Yes, they may talk big and make you feel small. But wait a minute – who is on their side? They may seem more equipped than you are; but all of that is just the arm of flesh. It is the flexing of human muscle. *He said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”* 2 Kings 6:16

Now, turn and look at yourself. Yes, you may be inexperienced. Yes, you may be just a little person. But, with you is the Lord God Jehovah. If the Lord fights in your corner, you have no fear of the giants who blow hot air against you. He is *Jehovah Nissi,* the Lord our Banner in battle.

The Lord will help you. The Lord will fight for you. The Lord will give you the victory. He said “Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. Jeremiah 33:3 Invite Him to the battle. He is your strength.

LET’S PRAY
O Lord, You are my strength, arise and let Your enemies be scattered. By the Authority of Scripture and the Power of the Holy Ghost, you sickness be surmounted, challenge be surmounted persecution be surmounted in the mighty name of Jesus Christ!

Fountain! Stay connected to Jesus Christ the Ultimate Source of Life to bear much fruits.

And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm. But He said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, “Who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!”
Luke 8:24–25

Jesus asked His disciples about the whereabouts of their faith after He stilled the storm, they found themselves in. Why did the Lord ask them, ‘where is your faith?’ What did He mean?

*• Faith can be abandoned.*
It is possible to have faith and still not use it. The Lord Jesus did not doubt the faith of His disciples. He questioned why they did not use it at the crucial time when they needed it the most.

We abandon our faith when we allow the storms of life to overwhelm us so much so, that we don’t use our faith. Many times we magnify our problems to the extent that we abandon all that we know about God and His promises. Jesus does not want us to shelve our faith when we come against big problems. Our faith in God must always be put to work, no matter what.

*• Faith rests in God.*
The Lord demonstrated His faith by remaining calm and confident when He and His disciples were caught in the storm. Instead of panicking, the Lord trusted His Father to keep Him even when He was asleep.

*• Faith works at all times.*
When we operate in faith, we can trust the Lord to keep us at all times and in all situations. Although the Lord Jesus was asleep in the boat, His faith was active in God.

*• Faith speaks to the storm.*
When the Lord Jesus awoke from His sleep, He simply issued a command, and the waves obeyed Him. That is what He wants us to do. The Lord wants us to speak God’s word against every storm of life.

*LET’S PRAY*
Heavenly Father, my faith is fully rested in you alone. I therefore command every storm be to be stilled in the mighty name of Jesus Christ!

Fountain! Jesus the Ultimate Source of Life.

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
Isaiah 43:19

A gift to the king challenges his wealth. The reason why a thankful heart invokes God’s blessings and time spent in God’s presence is never a waste. Be rest assured that your prayers are answered.

Blessed be the Lord, who bears our burden day by day, The God who is our salvation! Selah. Psalm 68:19 AMP

Sometimes, human limitations challenge our ability to see, understand and fully experience God’s blessings, but they do not prevent God’s blessings meant for us. God is faithful and always answers our prayers.

LET’S PRAY.
May the Lord empower you to fully experience the blessings of this lent and beyond in Jesus’ name. Amen!

Fountain!

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:12-13 NIV

Relationship is a thing of God and so we need to allow Him to direct our actions.
Let God release you. Regular relationships such as marriage, business and even friendship can break out of sheer circumstances, just like that. The origin of a relationship is God. Until God releases us, we cannot quit the relationship but today it does not take us anything – just disagreement, misunderstanding and conflict – we quit the relationship. You cannot do it alone. You keep quitting relationships, business partners, marriage, and friendships.

Do not end relationships because of disagreements or fights, such scenarios create tension and stifle the spirit of forgiveness.

You move from one Church to another, it does take you anything and you leave. Without God releasing you, the question is: when are you going to settle with the relationship? God led you to that Church where your assignment in life can be accomplished. The Devil is against everything of God’s interest and will be using every means to sabotage God’s purpose.

You can count how many business partners you have had in the past, friends. The Bible says relationships begin with God and then to humans. If a relationship begins with God, we cannot just quit under any circumstances.
Something that you are not its origin, you can’t just quit under any circumstances. Unless you are released, you cannot quit. Why? Because God can speak through disagreement. God can speak through conflict, through tribulations, adversity – God can speak through them. He can speak joy through sadness. God sometimes uses foolish things to prepare us for a future victory and or success. He sometimes uses foolish things to preserve us. If God does not release us and we quit the relationship because of misunderstanding, disagreement, conflict and whatever – the way you quit is the way you will enter the next relationship. So let God release you.

We don’t leave a relationship as a Christian because of fight, disagreement, misunderstanding, adversity or conflict. We don’t leave relationships because the man you think is your enemy today can be your saviour tomorrow. Many have destroyed their future helpers. The man who is your enemy today can be your saviour tomorrow.

John 20:23 “If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

What the Bible is saying is “If you forgive the sins of any, their sins are forgiven; But if you retain the sins of any, they are *retained”* This means we preserve the sin of other people when we pick up an offence, we harbour resentment.

It is impossible to establish a healthy relationship, a good relationship with a person who has left another relationship resentful and offended. Someone who breaks a relationship because of misunderstanding, disagreement or conflict now becomes your friend – there is no friendship there; you are destroyed.
You may be wrong or right, but you have no right to pick an offense.
Someone who breaks a relationship because of misunderstanding, disagreement or conflict that has not been resolved to start a new relationship with another who also might have left an unreconciled relationship. This new relationship is dead at the start because they are filled with infections of past hurts and unforgiveness.

Can you see the reason why we are facing relationships that are not lasting nor rewarding?

It is wrong for Christians to carry their offences into new relationships after they have ended with previous ones. The same way you quit your previous relationships is the same way you will quit the new ones if you hold onto offences. Whether you are wrong or right, you have no right to go away with that conflict and establish another relationship.

No one succeeds alone, hence the need to put away offence, forgive and forget in order to move ahead into a brighter tomorrow.

Our Lord Jesus knew that principle; that was why He had disciples. You cannot succeed alone; you need people. Jesus knew this; that was why He had disciples.”

Many have lost their opportunity for divine visitation by taking offence and pulling out of the place God had destined for them to succeed. Know and realise that the devil will always throw offence your way whenever you are in the right place where God wants you to be. If you are in a place where God wants you to be, the devil will want to offend you to pull out.

Beloved, wait for God in all circumstances rather than to take rash decisions instigated by your human faculties. No matter the crisis, don’t quit; wait patiently for God’s release. Let God release you.

LET’S PRAY.
Heavenly Father, connect my heart with Your Word for revelation and direction in my relationship to make right choices that glorifies You in Jesus Name. Endue me with strength and wisdom from on high to endure in my relationship to glorify You.
O Lord, make me a channel of shining light where there is darkness. Make me a channel of love where there is hurt, misunderstanding, disagreement, conflict and adversity in Jesus Name.

“Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will do it.” 1 Thessalonians 5:24

God will do exactly what He has said He will do if we only Believe Him. He will Sanctify us wholly because without Him we cannot receive His promises.

For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.” Romans 9:15-16

Abraham was called by God. This simply means he lived differently from those of his father’s house. The call shows God’s intent to introduce him to a way of life governed by divine laws.

Abraham’s response to this call represents an intentional decision on his part to honour God; thereby dissociating from the beliefs and practices of his father’s house. Consequently, this decision connected Abraham to God as his source

Abraham’s experience is akin to our salvation in Jesus Christ. By making Him our Lord and Saviour, we have chosen intentionally to live by God’s divine laws. This dissociates us from beliefs and practices that are ungodly and positions God as our source.

The process of ‘being called by God’ can also be thought of as ‘being named by God’. In this new identity we will severally face the conflict of whether to respond to our old identity with its flaws or to maintain our identity in Christ.

Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. Psalm 32:1 – 3

Our identity in Christ is a complete package that comes with support and strength from God. This entire identity is based on God’s ability to honour His promises to us. Thus as long as we depend on Him we cannot fail.

LET’S PRAY.
Let Your Mercy and Favour speak for me,
Lord Jesus Christ.

O Jesus, Let Your Mercy and Favour answer for me.

O Jesus, Letter Your Mercy and Favour restore to me the joy of my Salvation.

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” Matthew 18:21 (NIV)


One of the things we learn after salvation is how to relate with other people whether they are believers or not. In our relationship with others, we must demonstrate the love of God. We must love people as Christ loved us. In loving people, we must forgive them of any offense against us. Jesus bore our sin on himself and paid the full penalty of our sins so we could be declared eternally forgiven. We no longer have any debt of sin to pay. Jesus purchased our forgiveness with his blood without a single plea from us. Now that God has demonstrated unconditional forgiveness to us, how are we to relate with our fellow-men when they offend us? Colossians 2:13, “And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses”. We are to extend this same unconditional forgiveness to others in love.

We must choose to forgive those who offend us even without an apology from them. From our opening text, Peter thought forgiveness should have a limit, a limit of forgiving a brother seven continuous times. The answer from Jesus indicates that our forgiveness must be countless, there should not come a time where you refuse forgiveness to somebody. There are many wrong things we do but God does not hold it against us. Under the law of Moses, men get punished for the wrong things they did. However, when Christ came, he revealed the character of our Father as one who does not wait for you to forgive others before he forgives you. The Psalmist said in Psalms 130:3-4, “If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared”. There is forgiveness with God all the time. He is faithful and just to forgive sins.

The motivation to forgive others is because we have also been forgiven by Christ not because the person has apologized. When we understand how God has forgiven us in Christ, we shall be willing to forgive others. You have the ability to forgive. Forgive that brother or sister from your heart. It is true that what he or she did to you was very painful. It is true that your image is bruised by that false allegation. It is true that he denied you when you needed his help. It is true you were disappointed. You have the power and opportunity to retaliate but remember how you have been forgiven in Christ and forgive him or her. We have the responsibility to demonstrate the love of God we have received to others. Anytime we refuse to forgive others, we are falsely telling ourselves that we have not been forgiven by God. As the Father has forgiven us, we must also forgive others.

CONFESSION: As a child of God, I forgive without conditions just as my heavenly Father does.