Daily Devotional for Friday 2nd July

[Edoman]

RHAPSODY OF REALITIES DAILY DEVOTIONAL



FRIDAY, 2ND JULY 2021


PASTOR CHRIS OYAKHILOME


THEME: OUR PRAYERS AS INCENSE


And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints (REVELATION 5:8)


In the Old Testament, the Lord gave instructions to the priests to burn incense morning and evening in the Tabernacle. They were also to offer sacrifices in the morning and in the evening. Yet, the Bible says all that was a shadow of things to come (Hebrews 10:1). God wanted something better and spiritual.


Many years later, the Apostle John, by the Spirit, sees into the heavens and is shown this amazing truth: “…golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints” (Revelation 5:8). Blessed be God! When we pray in the earth, it comes before the Lord as incense. King David had a revelation of this; the Lord had guided him to understand that our prayers are actually set before God as incense. So he said in Psalm 141:2, “Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.”


The kind of prayer referred to is one of worship and intercession. In worship, we offer sacrifices of praise to the Lord with the fruit of our lips—words of praise and thanksgiving (Hebrews 13:15). Our intercessory prayers go up to God, thwarting the plans of the enemy and changing things in the heavenly realm. This is such a heavenly ministry!


Think about it: As we pray, we send incense; fragrance of a sweet smell—a sacrifice acceptable and well-pleasing to God—resulting in positive changes in the earth! That’s why you should always pray. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says, “Pray without ceasing.” 1 Timothy 2:1-4 says, “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority....” 


As saints of God, we have a ministry of prayer. It’s our responsibility to pray for sinners that they may receive salvation. Each one of us has a primary ministry of worship, which is ministering to the Lord. These prayers of intercession and worship are the incense before the Father.


PRAYER

Dear Father, through Christ, I offer up to you sacrifices of praise—prayers of worship and intercession—the fruit of my lips that thankfully acknowledge, confess and glorify your Name. You’re the Holy and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords. You’re worthy of all praise and adoration, forever and ever. Amen.


FURTHER STUDY:

REVELATION 5:8 CEV “After he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders knelt down before him. Each of them had a harp and a gold bowl full of incense,[a] which are the prayers of God’s people.”


REVELATION 8:4 KJV”And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand.”


HEBREWS 13:15 KJV”By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.”


DAILY SCRIPTURE READING:

1 Year Bible Reading Plan : Acts 15:36-16:1-15 & Esther 8-10

2 Year Bible Reading Plan : Luke 6:12-19 & Deuteronomy 30.






#TALKINGSESSION 




Dear Father, what a great honour and privilege it is to be inseparably one with You. I thank You for giving me the grace to face challenging situations and still come out victorious!


 Thank You for the strength of the Spirit that wells up within me each time I am faced with adverse circumstances that challenge my faith! Your indwelling and abiding presence is my guarantee that, come what may, I’ll always be a winner.


I thank You for the life of victory and dominion I have in Christ Jesus; thank You for the revelation of Your Word that enlightens me on who I am in Christ.


 Thank You for leading and guiding me in the way that I should go, taking paths that You’ve preordained for me, and elevating me unto higher levels of Your glory. Your Word is working in me, and building me up daily.

In every area of my life, there’s development and progress because the Word is my total life-builder. I am effective, excellent, and prospering in all things because I live in, and by, the Word. 


I am full of Spirit; even as I meditate on the Word today, my path is lighted for me to see all that the Father had set for me, as I shine as a beacon of light to the world, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.






God bless you

[Edoman]

OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL

  
DATE:  FRIDAY 2ND JULY 2021. 

THEME: OCCUPY UNTIL HE RETURNS.

HYMN 8:   HO, MY COMRADES! SEE THE SIGNAL.
1. Ho, my comrades, see the signal, waving in the sky!
Reinforcements now appearing, victory is nigh.

o Refrain:
“Hold the fort, for I am coming,” Jesus signals still;
Wave the answer back to Heaven, “By Thy grace we will.”

2. See the mighty host advancing, Satan leading on;
Mighty ones around us falling, courage almost gone!

3. See the glorious banner waving! Hear the trumpet blow!
In our Leader’s Name we triumph over every foe.

4. Fierce and long the battle rages, but our help is near;
Onward comes our great Commander, cheer, my comrades, cheer!
  
MEMORISE:
And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come. Luke 19:13

BIBLE READING: Joshua 13:1-6.

1  Now Joshua was old and stricken in years; and the LORD said unto him, Thou art old and stricken in years, and there remaineth yet very much land to be possessed.

2 This is the land that yet remaineth: all the borders of the Philistines, and all Geshuri,

3 From Sihor, which is before Egypt, even unto the borders of Ekron northward, which is counted to the Canaanite: five lords of the Philistines; the Gazathites, and the Ashdothites, the Eshkalonites, the Gittites, and the Ekronites; also the Avites:

4 From the south, all the land of the Canaanites, and Mearah that is beside the Sidonians unto Aphek, to the borders of the Amorites:

5 And the land of the Giblites, and all Lebanon, toward the sunrising, from Baalgad under mount Hermon unto the entering into Hamath.

6 All the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon unto Misrephothmaim, and all the Sidonians, them will I drive out from before the children of Israel: only divide thou it by lot unto the Israelites for an inheritance, as I have commanded thee.

MESSAGE: 
Jesus’ parable in the memory verse of today was directed to the disciples who He was preparing for the Great Commission in Mark 16:15-16. They were to ‘occupy’ means ‘to keep busy’ alone; it is more than that. We must not keep ourselves ‘busy’ doing nothing substantial. To understand the import of Christ’s command in Luke 19:13, we must look at the Bible reading of toady. The Lord assessed the occupation of the Promised Land under Joshua’s leadership as below His expectation. This should be food for thought for the Church today. Joshua 13:1 says:
“1Now Joshua was old and stricken in years; and the LORD said unto him, Thou art old and stricken in years, and there remaineth yet very much land to be possessed.”

Joshua became old and did not have the required energy to lead the battle against the inhabitants of the land which God had given to the children of Israel. In the same vein, when Jesus Christ said that we should go into the world and preach the gospel to every creature, he was actually saying that we should occupy the land so as to establish His reign on earth. It is beyond keeping ourselves busy just for the sake of it. The questions now are, “Are we really occupying while awaiting Jesus’ second coming?” “Can we say we are occupying both the geographical and spiritual landscape and atmosphere of the world?” “What can we show for all the millions we are spending on missions and evangelistic efforts?” “Have we paused our efforts to occupy the nooks and crannies of the kingdoms of this world like the disciples of old?” We must always remember that our mandate is to make disciples of all nations.

Beloved, we must not lose ground any more. As a matter of fact, we must recover the grounds we have lost. We must summon courage to go after the enemy and recover the kingdoms that once belonged to the Church and the cathedrals that have been turned to dens of sin. Christian nations that have become secular must be revived and brought back to the light of the gospel of the Son of the Living God. May the Lord help us.

ACTION POINT:
You must be active in spreading the gospel to the whole world and win back institutions and nations for the Lord our God.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Nehemiah 13.
 
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE

[Edoman]

SEEDS OF DESTINY DAILY DEVOTIONAL BY DR PASTOR PAUL ENENCHE


FRIDAY 02 JULY, 2021

TOPIC: A WISDOM KEY FROM THE LIFE OF JOSEPH

SCRIPTURE: …and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report. Genesis 37:2.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Always take a stand against evil even if you have to stand alone.

It has been confirmed that wisdom is a critical asset for destiny fulfilment. Wisdom aids the fulfilment of life and destiny. 

Now, one place where wisdom can be accessed is the Presence of God. Wisdom can also be learnt from the lives of those who walked with God. This is because walking with God is walking in wisdom. Star personalities of the Kingdom like Joseph, Nehemiah, Daniel, Esther, Moses, etc., were made by the Wisdom of God. So, there is a connection between stardom and wisdom in the Kingdom.

In our study today, we shall be looking at a wisdom key from the life of Joseph.

Joseph was the wisest man in his generation. His wisdom defeated the wisdom of the magicians of Egypt. So, it is important to learn from his wisdom.

Now, one wisdom key to learn from the life of Joseph is: 

Always take a stand against evil even if you have to stand alone.

In Genesis 37:2, Joseph stood alone in righteousness when he brought the evil report of his eleven brothers to his father. His eleven brothers were all on one side, the side of evil; and he was alone on the side of righteousness. Beloved, determine never to follow the multitude to do evil (Exodus 23:2).

We live in a generation where multitudes of people are running in the wrong direction and everyone else feels compelled to run in their direction. Beloved, never be under the pressure to run with the multitude in the wrong direction. Always take a stand against evil even if you have to stand alone.

Remember this: Always take a stand against evil even if you have to stand alone.

ASSIGNMENTS:

1. Make up your mind to learn wisdom from the lives of men and women in scripture who walked with God.

2. Stand against evil if you have to stand alone.

PRAYER: Lord, I receive the grace to learn from the wisdom of those who walked with You. Help me to stand against evil even if I have to stand alone, Lord in Jesus’ Name.

FOR FURTHER UNDERSTANDING, GET THIS MESSAGE: WISDOM FROM THE LIFE OF JOSEPH (PT 1A).

QUOTE: The way of integrity, at any time, is superior to the way of compromise. Culled from “WHO ARE YOU?” by Dr Paul Enenche.

DAILY READING: Proverbs 13-15

REFLECTION: What is more important to you? The approval of men or the approval of God; validation by men or validation by God? What God feels about you is more important than anything else. 

PROPHETIC DECLARATION/WORD: Grace to take a stand even if it means standing alone is released on you now in Jesus’ Name.