Daily Devotional for Wednesday 18th December

[Edoman]

RHAPSODY OF REALITIES

WEDNESDAY, 18TH DECEMBER.

REMAIN HUMBLE


For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted (Luke 14:11).

The Scriptures show us examples of many who accomplished extraordinary feats, rose to kingly positions, and went from obscurity to limelight when they were yet humble.

Sadly, some of these who were elevated to such regal positions became haughty, arrogant, and proud; they became “big” in their own eyes, and were abased by God. The story of King Saul is a ready case in point Saul was given the grace of leadership and anointed as king over Israel.

This happened “when he was little in his own sight,” according to the Bible (1 Samuel 15:17). Soon after, he went against spiritual instructions: he offered a burnt offering, against God’s commandment (1 Samuel 13:9-11). At another instance, he wouldn’t completely destroy the Amalekites as the Lord expressly instructed (1 Samuel 15:1-11). As a result of his pride, he was rejected by God from being king over Israel (1 Samuel 15:26). Sad!

But look at Jesus! Even though He knew who He was—the blessed, Sovereign (Ruler), the King of kings and the Lord of lords—He was humble. Luke 4:16-21 shows when He came to Nazareth where He had been brought up, He went into the synagogue as His custom was on the Sabbath day, and He stood up to read from the Holy Scrolls. He didn’t yell at the priest,

“Look, the King of kings is here!” The Lord simply got up and read as He was asked. And when He was done reading, “…He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down…” (Luke 4:20 NKJV). What a show of humility!

If you’re a leader or pastor, for example, was there a time when it was such a great honour for you to be asked to speak before a congregation? Or have you suddenly become so big in your own eyes that you get offended if you aren’t called upon?

1 Peter 5:5 says, “…be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.” True humility is submitting yourself to the authority, influence, and impact of God’s Word and His instructions. When you do, you’ll receive more grace, wherein lies the power for promotion, increase, and supernatural progress.

PRAYER

Dear Father, I’m submitted to the lordship, authority, and influence of your Word, in all humility. Therefore, I enjoy the effects of your superabundant grace, which causes me to walk in promotion, excellence, victory and dominion, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

FURTHER STUDY

James 4:6; James 4:10; Philippians 2:3 AMPC
1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN:
Revelation 10 ; Micah 1-3

2 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN:
Acts 1:1-11 ; 2 Chronicles 32

[Edoman]

OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL

DATE: WEDNESDAY 18TH DECEMBER 2019

THEME: BY WHOSE STANDARD?

MEMORISE:

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 12:2

READ: 1 John 2:15-29

15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.

19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.

20 But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.

21 I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth.

22 Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.

23 Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also.

24 Let that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father.

25 And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life.

26 These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you.

27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

28 And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.

29 If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him.

MESSAGE

In this perverse world, there are many standards by which people live. Different cultures on earth all define standards they expect people to live by and try to impose this on anyone that lives under their influence. However, when Jesus came to earth preaching the kingdom of God, He dismissed these worldly standards, replacing them with the standards of God’s kingdom. For example, the world believes that a leader should be lord over his or her followers, but Jesus said it should not be so amongst us Christians. Heaven’s standard of leadership establishes that a leader should serve his or her followers (Luke 22:25-27). Also, the world tells us that it is foolish to receive an insult from someone and keep quite; the expectation is that you should reply with even more insults. Contrary to this, Jesus said when someone slaps you on one cheek, you should offer the other cheek also (Luke 6:29). The standard you live by indicate the kingdom you belong to. Speaking to God concerning His disciples, Jesus said in John 17:16:


“They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.”

If you live by the world’s standard, then you are of the world. What standards do you apply in your business dealings? By what standards do you relate with your wife or husband? What standards influence your behavior in your workplace? If you don’t live by Christ’s standards, don’t deceive yourself claiming that you are not of this world.

Many times, people live by the standards of the world because they are afraid of being rejected by the world. You must quickly understand that as a disciple of Jesus Christ that you cannot expect the world to love you. Jesus explained this to His disciples in John 15:19, saying:

“If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.”

If you are after the love of the world, then you have missed it completely. The one whose love you should be after is Jesus. His approval should be all that you seek. The world can hail you today for giving them bread and fish, then turn around to scream “Crucify Him!” tomorrow. The world is no one’s friend. The only true friend you can have is Jesus Christ. Guard your relationship with Him jealously, and live by His standards rather than those of the world.

KEY POINT:

The standards you live by show the kingdom you belong to.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Proverbs 1-4
Zechariah 5:5-6:15

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE

HYMN 4: TAKE MY LIFE.
1. Take my life and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
*Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in endless praise.

2. Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee.

3. Take my voice and let me sing,
Always, only for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee.

4. Take my silver and my gold,
Not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use
Every pow’r as Thou shalt choose.

5. Take my will and make it Thine,
It shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart, it is Thine own,
It shall be Thy royal throne.

6. Take my love, my Lord, I pour
At Thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself and I will be
Ever, only, all for Thee.

[Edoman]

SEEDS OF DESTINY*

by Dr. Paul Enenche, 18th December 2019 .

TOPIC – *THEY ONLY GATHER TO SCATTER.*

SCRIPTURE : Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake. Isaiah 54:15-17

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY : *When the wicked is doomed to crash, he recklessly looks for the trouble of the righteous.*


One day, during my days in the university as a student, we were in a meeting and one small girl rose up against me and said, ‘who do you think you are? Are you the only one who can preach? Are you the only one who thinks God can speak to?’ I was so amazed! But I did not say a word in response. Just five weeks later, I heard she was sick, vomited and died. I did not pray any prayer against her, not in the secret nor in the open.

It is curiosity that would make a goat to go to the hyena’s house to greet it. If a mad man places his hands on a naked electric cable, does anyone need to pray for him to be electrocuted?

Beloved, when the wicked is doomed to crash, he recklessly looks for the trouble of the righteous. When it is time for the wicked to be deleted from the land of the living, he looks for the trouble of the child of God.

Today, I decree that any wicked man or woman who has vowed that you should not live, if they fail to repent, destruction and death shall be their portion, in Jesus’ Name.

REMEMBER THIS : "When the wicked is doomed to crash, he recklessly looks for the trouble of the righteous."

*ASSIGNMENT (S)*

*1. Never be agitated when there is a gang up against you because such gang ups scattered even before it was formed.*
*2. Ensure you are on the path of uprightness and holiness. If you are not in the path of wrong you can’t be in the way of harm.*
PRAYER : Lord, I ask for the grace to be on the path of holiness and uprightness at all times. I decree that any gathering against me or the Church that is not of You shall scatter by fire. Let the wickedness of the wicked come upon their heads in this season Lord, in Jesus’ Name.

QUOTE: "If God is your enemy and the devil is your enemy, where do you stand?" Culled from ’15 Kingdom Strategies for Survival’ by Dr Paul Enenche
FOR FURTHER UNDERSTANDING GET THIS MESSAGE : "No Weapon Formed Shall Prosper".

DAILY READING : Habakkuk 1:1 to 3:9, Revelation 9:1 to 21, Psalm 137:1 to 9, Proverbs 30:10
AMAZING FACT : Horses have the largest eyes of any land mammal

PROPHETIC WORD/DECLARATION : Every human and satanic gathering against your life and destiny in this season is scattered in Jesus’ Name.

[Edoman]

OUR DAILY MANNA DEVOTIONAL

BOOKLET FOR CHAMPION

DATE: WEDNESDAY 18TH DECEMBER, 2019
TOPIC: CHECK YOUR INSIDE!

BASIC SCRIPTURES: (GENESIS 39:20-23; JEREMIAH 1:9-12)

As we prepare to move into the New Year, resolve to dream big dreams, to stretch your faith and to do great things for God.

There are two things you must never forget:
1. Winning/ELEVATION is not a function of what you have around you but rather of what you have within you. In other words, you cannot be limited by lack of money, people, or resources. Those are things around you.” The only things that can limit you are “internal things.” Your attitude, your faith, your discipline and many more. That is why as the year ends, you must invest more time in developing and building up your INNER MAN!

The second thing is this: It is not what happens TO you but what happens IN you that wins!
Don’t let the disappointing situations of life reach into you and turn off your switch of victory.

No matter how 2019 has been, REFUSE TO GIVE UP! Accept what you cannot change! Change what you cannot accept! Yes! You can’t change some things that have happened this year! But you can decide to stay positive even though you feel disappointed or you feel like everything is crushing you.

Instead of feeling sorry fo r yourself or letting your emotions control you, you can decide to LOOK up to the God who knows your future – 2020! It’s easy to get worked up and create an even worse situation for yourself. But the only thing you have control over, is how you react to the battles confronting you!

Choose to end 2019 in HOPE and refuse regrets! Refuse to be a quitter! Refuse to snuff life out of your God-given dreams – 2020 will be your ELEVATION season!

Refuse depression! If God could not forsake Joseph in the PIT and in the PRISON, He will not forsake you. No Matter How Deep Life Pushes You, God Will Go Down With You To Take You To The Top, Higher And Higher Than Everyone And Everything That Pushed You Down. Hold on and hold out! You will get there! (Give out the 2020 ODM as Christmas and New Year gift items this week).

The 2020 January 21-day fasting prayers! The 2020 ODM and “War Against Haman – 15” booklets are out! Give them out as Christmas/New Year gift items. Get your copies from any bookshop now! Give to Family/Friends this month! The “War Against Haman-15” booklet contains the 2020 January 21-day fasting prayers!

PRAYER POINTS:

Take your best song of worship now.
1. It’s a new day of grace; praise God and thank Him for this new day and the gift of life.
2. Pray now as you have been touched by today’s Word.
3. Pray now and decree success over every project that you have
embarked on personally, in your family and ministry. REBUKE
EVERY SPIRIT OF DELAY AND DEPRESSION!
4. Decree this: EVERY GOOD WORK THAT MY HAND HAS
STARTED, IT SHALL FINISH IN JESUS NAME.
5. Pray about today!

THE BIBLE-IN-ONE-YEAR: (JAMES 3-5)
BY: BISHOP (DR) CHRIS E. KWAKPOVWE

[Edoman]

*CAC LIVING WATER*


*DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE*


*Wednesday, December 18, 2019*.

*TOPIC:**RETURN TO THE LORD*

*READ: Zechariah 1:1-6*

*Zechariah 1:1-6* - In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the Lord unto Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying,

The Lord hath been sore displeased with your fathers.

Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Turn ye unto me, saith the Lord of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the Lord of hosts.

Be ye not as your fathers, unto whom the former prophets have cried, saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Turn ye now from your evil ways, and from your evil doings: but they did not hear, nor hearken unto me, saith the Lord.

Your fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for ever?

But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, Like as the Lord of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us.

*MEMORISE:*

*I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you" (Luke 15:18)*

*EXPOSITION*

God is interested in having deeper relationship with us as He did with our patriarchs of faith. His power remains the same (Heb. 13:8). But many of us are far from God, like the prodigal son in Jesus' parable. Unless we return to Him, we will never enjoy Him; neither would we experience His end-time apostolic, revival fire that we are waiting for.

To return, here, suggests that someone has left the right place. Majority of people that the Lord wants to use, have changed departments in the church because their former departments are not noticed and appreciated. They have changed to departments where people would see them and probably give them standing ovation. This is contrary to the call of God for their lives.

How fervent were you before, in God's presence? Remember those days when you first believed, how you passionately go out on evangelism.

How committed you were then. Remember how you were help to the helpless and poor, mouth to the oppressed, and voice to the less privileged, widows/widowers and orphans. Is the case not sadly different, now? Remember from the height you fell and return to Christ, your first love (Rev. 2:4,5). You cannot close your heart and eyes to these people.
Better not to aspire to be known by men while God's unhappy with your works.

A life outside God's will is full of sorrow and depression. What can the world offer you that can compare to what God has prepared for you, both here now, and in eternity? Therefore say to them, 'Thus says the Lord of hosts: "Return to Me," says the Lord of hosts, "and I will return to you," says the Lord of hosts' (Zech. 1:3).

*PRAYER POINTS*

1. Pray that the Lord should help you to be where He wants you to be.
2. Pray that the Lord should help us to return to Him and our places of assignments.
3. Let us intercede for the missionaries that are posted to unpalatable places that God should give them the grace, patience and tolerance to obey, in Jesus' name.

*EXTRA READING FOR TODAY: Hosea 12:11 - 14:9; Joel 1:1 - 2:14; Revelation 6:14 - 7:17*

*HAVE A WONDERFUL WEDNESDAY......
....SHALOM*