Daily Devotional for Saturday 27th July

[Edoman]

RHAPSODY OF REALITIES

SATURDAY, 27TH JULY.

BOLD IN HIS PRESENCE

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need (Hebrews 4:16).

In Luke 18:9-14, the Lord Jesus gave a parable of the Pharisee who was obsessed by his own virtue, and “religiosity,” contrary to a tax collector who humbly asked God for mercy. The Pharisee, priding himself in his self-righteousness, said to God, “…I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess…” (Luke 18:11-13).

However, the Publican, feeling unqualified to even stand before God, said, “God be merciful to me a sinner.” In the words of the Master, the Publican went away justified, while the Pharisee was condemned in his pride. But who was Jesus teaching this to? It was the Jews; He was teaching them not to trust in their self-righteousess; He was teaching them humility in prayer

Today, there’re Christians who, in reference to this parable, would pray with a beggarly attitude, condemning themselves before the Father. But God doesn’t want that. The Publican prayed that way because he lived under the Old Testament; Jesus hadn’t yet consummated the works of salvation. Now that He has, we’re bold and confident before our heavenly Father. His vicarious sacrifice in our behalf gave us righteousness; thus, we’re bold and unashamed before Him in love.

Therefore, don’t pray, “Please Father, I know I don’t qualify for the blessings I’m asking for, but have mercy on me, Lord.” No! He already had mercy on you and blessed you with ALL spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 1:3). One of those blessings is righteousness, which gives you the ability to stand before God without guilt, fear, condemnation or inferiority. You can talk to God directly and fellowship with Him in love, because He’s your loving, gracious, heavenly Father. Hallelujah!

The Lord Jesus is our ability to stand in God’s presence without fear, for He’s our righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30). He gave us the right to be bold in God’s presence; so, don’t pray as one who isn’t qualified to be in His presence. Be bold.
Notice our opening verse again; it says to “obtain mercy,” not “ask for mercy”; which means, grab it! Whatever you desire, His mercy already made it available; therefore, boldly reach out and take it! Glory to God!

CONFESSION

I have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Jesus Christ, in whom I’ve obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to His divine will. I live above circumstances, because I’m an associate of the God-kind. Hallelujah!

FURTHER STUDY

Ephesians 3:11-12; Romans 8:16-17; Hebrews 4:16 AMPC
1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN
Romans 2:1-29 & Psalms 38-41

2 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN
Luke 11:27-36 & Judges 1

[Edoman]

OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL

DATE: SATURDAY 27TH JULY 2019

THEME: BEWARE OF EXCESSIVE PROFITEERING.

MEMORISE:

He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor. Proverbs 28:8

READ: Proverbs 11:1-4

1A false balance is abomination to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight.

2 When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.

3 The integrity of the upright shall guide them: but the perverseness of transgressors shall destroy them.

4 Riches profit not in the day of wrath: but righteousness delivereth from death.

MESSAGE

Today, the Spirit of the Lord is warning us to beware of excessive profiteering in business. This is something people do in order to enrich themselves with worldly materials and possessions procured through huge profits. God says it is an act of wickedness when we unduly profit from essential goods and services. You may not know the pain you are inflicting by doing unless God opens your eyes to see that some who need the goods or services for survival are suffering because they cannot afford to pay what you are charging them. People who do this either do not know or have forgotten the words of wisdom in Proverbs 13:11, which says:

“Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished: but he that gathereth by labour shall increase.”

It is even worse when some rich employers of labor deny their workers their due wages, all in a bid to live large on what does not belong to them. It is equivalent to slavery when people work for you and you either don’t pay them or you tactically delay their payday. If you are involved in this, the Holy Spirit says to you in James 5:3-4:

“Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.”

A close look at the misfortune of those practicing such wickedness will make any wise person to heed God’s warning in this scripture. Those who loot the public treasury in order to leave something behind for their children have proved themselves foolish in this regard. Even in their lifetime, their children begin to mismanage their ill-gotten properties. We have heard stories of laborer’s children buying the properties of their fathers’ masters after the Lord of Sabaoth caused wealth to change hands. Only the riches gotten through just means can stand the test of time. No wonder Proverbs 22:22-23 says:

“Rob not the poor, because he is poor: neither oppress the afflicted in the gate:For the LORD will plead their cause, and spoil the soul of those that spoiled them.”

Beloved, remember the words of our Lord Jesus Christ and be wise: He warned us that the value of a man’s life does not consist of the abundance of the things he has (Luke 12:15). May the Lord grant you the great gain that comes from godly commitment in Jesus’ Name.

PRAYER POINT:

Father, grant me grace to live my life as Your worthy ambassador in Jesus’ Name.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Judges 7-8
Ezekiel 23:28-45

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE

HYMN 5: LET OTHERS SEE JESUS IN YOU.

1.While passing thro' this world of sin,
and others your life shall view,
Be clean and pure without, within;
Let others see Jesus in you.

Refrain:
Let others see Jesus in you,
Let others see Jesus in you.
Keep telling the story, be faithful and true;
Let others see Jesus in you.

2. Your life's a book before their eyes,
They're reading it thro' and thro'
Say, does it point them to the skis,
Do others see Jesus in you?

Refrain

3. Then live for Christ both day and night,
Be faithful, be brave and true,
and lead the lost to life and Christ.
Let others see Jesus in you.

Refrain

[Edoman]

SEEDS OF DESTINY:
BY DR. (PST.) PAUL ENENCHE
(DUNAMIS INTERNATIONAL GOSPEL CENTRE-DIGC)

SATURDAY 27TH JULY, 2019

TOPIC:
THE NECESSITY OF FAITH

SCRIPTURE: Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: It is faith that gives substance to hope.

Necessity is a major driver of exploits. When the necessity of a thing is known, exploit in that direction is achievable.

So, we are going to look at one of the necessities of faith in order to increase our drive towards growing our faith so as to live a victorious life on earth.

Now, why is faith necessary?

Faith turns expectations into manifestation

Hebrews 11:1 says, Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. To hope for something means to expect it, so it is faith that gives substance to hope.

For instance, if you are expecting your wedding to come to pass before the end of the year; if you are expecting the grace to command millions and billions of Naira for the purposes of the Gospel, or you are trusting God for the grace to operate in a higher realm of the anointing, etc. it is faith that would convert that expectation into manifestation.

This implies that where faith is lacking, expectation continues unfulfilled. Where faith is lacking, hope is deferred (Proverbs 13:12).

When a person’s hope is deferred, the arrival of the things he is expecting keeps being postponed and it makes the heart sick according to scripture (Prov. 13:12).

So, we need faith because there is no human being on earth today that does not have an expectation or expectations.

Remember this: It is faith that gives substance to hope.

ASSIGNMENTS:
1. Make up your mind to read God’s Word consistently.

2. Hold unto God’s promises; they will come to pass.

3. Never allow the situations of life to weigh you down.

4. Always do the opposite of what the devil expects from you.

FOR FURTHER UNDERSTANDING, GET THIS MESSAGE: THE MYSTERY OF FAITH

PRAYER: Lord, I will trust You in the night time and in the day. Let Your counsel and good thoughts for me be established, Lord, in Jesus’ Name.

DAILY BIBLE READING: 2 Chronicles 19:1 to 20:37, Romans 10:14 to 11:12, Psalm 21:1 to 13, Proverbs 20:4 to 6

QUOTE: Nothing disarms darkness like light. Culled from 15 KINGDOM STRATEGIES FOR SURVIVAL by Dr Paul Enenche.

AMAZING FACT: There is a plant that is able to simultaneously produce both tomatoes and potatoes, cleverly named as the “Ketchup ‘n’ Fries” plant.

PROPHETIC DECLARATION/WORD: The realm of exploits is your realm – in this season, you shall see the results of your faith in Jesus’ Name.

DON’T FORGET TO ATTEND: The Sunday Service tomorrow by 9:00am at the Glory Dome, the Lord’s Garden, Airport Road, Abuja. Endeavour to come to Church with your friends and loved ones. God bless you

[Edoman]

*OUR DAILY MANNA DEVOTIONAL*

_A DAILY DEVOTIONAL BOOKLET FOR CHAMPIONS_

*DATE: SATURDAY 27TH JULY, 2019*

*TOPIC: HE CRIED: FINISH MY DESTINY – Part 2*
*BASIC SCRIPTURE: GALATIANS 1:6-20*

Don’t forget our devotional story of yesterday! And I remember what Simon Sinek wrote: *“Don’t quit! Never give up trying to build the world you can see, even if others can’t see it. Listen to your drum and your drum only. It’s the one that makes the sweetest sound!”* So true! Listen to your inner light; it will guide you. Listen to inner peace; it will feed you! Listen to inner love; it will transform you, it will define you! It will immortalize you! 

Remember the Word says: YE ARE gods! You are carrying DIVINITY and an INNER BEAUTY of DESTINY others cannot see! Don’t be controlled by the opinions of others! Yesterday we saw that the greatest prison people live in is the fear of what other people think! One of the greatest mental freedom is truly not caring what anyone else thinks of you! Always declare that *“What God knows about me is more important than what others think about me.”*

Yes! Meditate on that! It will help you daily! Until you are more about what God thinks than what other people think, you are never truly free because you are not what others think you are! You are what knows you are! In this second half of 2019, stop imagining that OTHERS are thinking about you! In life, we are our biggest critics! No one criticizes yourself more than yourself! You have to let go of that inner fear and attitude. Stop making a big deal out of things and you won’t be so nervous and discouraged. What sense does it make to pretend that someone is judging you, *when in fact, they have THEIR OWN BATTLES TO CONTEND WITH? 

Most people will not sit there and calculate your life!* When you’re so focused on what others think, it stops you from being yourself and it stops you from seeing what you God wants you to see! Today’s scripture (KJV) Vs. 10 says: “For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.”

Wow! Stop caring about what others think! Stop pleasing men! They are dust like you!
*Wow! Follow me on my personal instagram handle – ourdailymanna_bishopchris, MY FACEBOOK PAGE: bishop chris kwakpovwe ODM and personal Twitter: ODM_DrChris, ODM Official instagram handle @ourdailymannaonline, Facebook official: our daily manna, Twitter: TweetODM.*

*PRAYER POINTS:* Take Song 1: What A Friend We Have In Jesus…

1. In your own words, pray about today’s word as led now.
2. Repent from listening to others! Repent from being moved by the views of others!
3. *OTHER PEOPLE have their own battles!* LORD, help me to always remember that ALL MEN ARE DUST LIKE ME! Help me NEVER to fear them or their opinions any longer!
*THE BIBLE-IN-ONE-YEAR: ECCLESIASTES 10-12*
*BY: BISHOP (DR) CHRIS E. KWAKPOVWE (CEK)*
_PUBLISHER/AUTHOR AND EDITOR-IN-CHIEF_
*Song 1: What A Friend We Have In Jesus*

1. What a friend we have in Jesus
All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit
O what needless pain we bear
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer.

2. Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged;
Take it to the Lord in prayer
Can we find a friend so faithful
Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness
Take it to the Lord in prayer.

[Edoman]

LIVING WATER CAC DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE

Saturday, July 27, 2019.

BE REAL
READ: Luke 13:10-17

Luke 13:10-17 And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath.

And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.
And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.

And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.

And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day.

The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering?

And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?

And when he had said these things, all his adversaries were ashamed: and all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by him.

MEMORISE: And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward (Matthew 6:5)

EXPOSITION

Hypocrites usually have twisted lives and double characters. They hide the truth, as if it can be hidden forever. They make people see things from other angles, different from the right and real ones. They present lies as truth, and vice versa. The truth usually manifests to open it up.

Jesus lived a real, open, sincere and transparent life. This is integrity at its height. He rebuked all forms of masquerading and insincerity. Unlike the Pharisees, Sadducees and Scribes of His time, He revealed the way of God and showed example of how to walk therein. That Jesus labeled the ruler of the synagogue, who became infuriated because Jesus healed on the Sabbath, hypocrite, is an indication that He (Jesus) has zero-tolerance for people who live out what they are not on the inside, or those, who like chameleon, hide their true character (colour).

The ruler of the synagogue physically kicked Jesus, as if he were in Jesus’ shoes, he wouldn’t have done what Jesus did. Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? Who wouldn’t do that to his donkey?

The things that a hypocrite should expect include, desertion (Lk. 13:17b). The multitude rejoiced because Jesus exposed them and rebuked hypocrisy. The implication is that, the hypocrite would be left alone. Second is being exposed. What you have been trying to hide/cover from people would one day be blown open, whether you like it or not. Truth would be revealed, and lies would give way. Third is reduction. This is being put to shame: And when he said these things, all His adversaries (i.e. fellow hypocrites, including the ruler) were put to shame. Be real and sincere.

PRAYER POINTS

1. Lord, let me be real and sincere with You and in all I am and do.
2. Lord, change ministers of God who live double standard lives because of the fear of being lynched, if they tell the raw truth of the gospel.
3. Lord, continue to expose those who live against the gospel but claiming to be living for the gospel in our midst.
EXTRA READING FOR TODAY: Job. 14:10 – 16:15; Acts 21:35 – 22:16