Justice Secretary David Gauke confirmed new legislation would be introduced after a consultation revealed support for reforms of the existing fault-based system.
Currently in England and Wales, unless someone can prove there was adultery, unreasonable behaviour or desertion, the only way to obtain a divorce without their spouse’s agreement is to live apart for five years.
The proposed new arrangements will keep “irretrievable breakdown” of a marriage as the sole grounds for divorce.
But, rather than having to provide evidence relating to behaviour or separation, divorcing spouses will be required to make a statement that the marriage has broken down.
The ability of a husband or wife to contest a divorce – used in under two per cent of cases – will be scrapped under the shake-up.
The existing two-stage process, in which a decree nisi is followed by a decree absolute, will be retained under the proposed new system.
Today the government is announcing reforms to #divorce law which will help reduce family conflict and end divorcing couples having to blame each other for the breakdown of their marriage.
Be miserable and grieve and weep [over your sin]. Let your [foolish] laughter be turned to mourning and your [reckless] joy to gloom. — James 4:9 (AMP)
Yesterday I encountered a person who was quite demanding that I do something she wanted me to do and would not take no for an answer. I ended up being rude to her, and I feel a godly sorrow over my behavior. I always want to represent God well, and that means I often need to be long-suffering with someone who is irritating to me.
I don’t feel guilty and condemned, because I have repented and know that I am forgiven, but I do feel a godly sorrow, and I think that feeling is healthy and right. We should take our sin seriously and be deeply penitent when we do something that we know is wrong.
Although this feeling is uncomfortable, I welcome it because it impresses on me the importance of my witness for Christ and reminds me of how easy it is to behave in a fleshly and carnal way. The Bible urges us repeatedly to be on our guard against the temptations we encounter in the world and to live carefully. Being rude to someone may seem a small thing, but it is the little foxes that spoil the vine (see Song of Solomon 2:15).
I believe we should appreciate any feeling of chastisement that we receive from the Holy Spirit, because it is God helping us be the kind of people who represent Jesus well.
Prayer Starter: Lord, I appreciate Your conviction and chastisement, and I am deeply sorry for my sins and grateful for Your forgiveness. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
If God is living inside of you, then everything in your body belongs to God.
SCRIPTURE: What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: If God is living inside of you, then everything in your body belongs to God.
From our anchor scripture, we understand that our body is the temple of the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of the Living God. This implies that God is living inside of you. If God is living inside of you, then, everything in your body belongs to God.
Every cell, tissue, organ, system and every department of your life, whether spiritual or physical, is meant for spiritual occupation and not for demonic habitation.
Our God is a jealous God and cannot share His habitation (your body) with any witch, wizard, sickness or disease. Only the Holy Ghost has the right to live in your body and it is His responsibility to maintain the structure (your body), therefore, your body cannot crack, break or dilapidate as a habitation of the Spirit of God.
Beloved, make up your mind to live with the mentality that no sickness or disease is allowed to take illegal habitation of your body. Just as darkness cannot survive in the presence of light, affliction cannot survive in the body of a Holy Ghost-filled child of God. You must acquire a total hatred and anger against the devil and the kingdom of darkness and any affliction they want to impose on your life.
Resist the devil today!
REMEMBER THIS: If God is living inside of you, everything in your body belongs to God.
ASSIGNMENTS:
Study the Word of God and locate Scriptures that pertain to your healing and health.
Believe the Word of God concerning your healing and health.
PRAYER: In the Name of Jesus, I declare that my body is the Temple of God, therefore, the devil has no place in my life; I am free from sickness and diseases in Jesus’ Name.
FOR FURTHER UNDERSTANDING, GET THIS MESSAGE: I AM A MOBILE TEMPLE
QUOTE: There can be no victory spiritually without warfare. Culled from REASON FOR LIVING by Dr Paul Enenche
DAILY READING: Deuteronomy 33:1 to 29, Luke 13:1 to 21, Psalm 78:65 to 72, Proverbs 12:25
AMAZING FACT: The human hand, including the wrist, contains 54 bones.
TODAY IN HISTORY: 09/04/1991 – Georgia declares independence from the Soviet Union.
Today’s devotional was written by Pastor Paul Enenche of the Dunamis International Gospel Centre (DIGC), headquartered at Abuja, Nigeria, with Pastor Paul and Becky Enenche, as the Senior Pastors. It is a power-packed arena where God’s Presence, Principles and Power are at work for the salvation, healing and restoration of human destinies and dignities
Flatimes Notice Board: Until you are born again, God ever abiding presence will never be with you. You must be born again to enjoy continuous victory. Please say the displayed prayer below in faith:
Lord Jesus, come into my life. I accept You as my Lord and Personal Saviour. I believe in my heart You died and rose from the dead to save me. Thank You Lord for saving me, in Jesus name Amen.
If you just prayed the prayer of salvation online please send your testimonies and prayer request to [email protected], 07026385437 OR 08141320204.
Faith is a spiritual force that commits God’s integrity to make good His promise. This means that if God has said anything to you and you have faith, you have committed His integrity that HE will make happen what HE said and HE cannot lie. Faith is evidential and substantial; you have not seen it but you know that it is real. Every good report is a product of faith.
Faith is your access to all your inheritance in Christ. It guarantees your access to every inheritance you have in Christ. Faith is the bridge that connects you to your destination. God has no problem confirming His word; He is only looking for who will trust Him.
Every child of God has faith according to Rom. 12:3b
Rom. 12:3 -For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
To pray a prayer of faith, you must first of all locate appropriate scriptures which are in line with your request. This is because God will not respond to any prayer which are not in line with His word. So, when you want to pray, you must locate a scripture or scriptures which are relevant to what you want to ask God for.
1 John 5:14 – And this is the confidence that we have in him that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
So, firstly, you have to locate the right scripture to pray with; if you just pray anyhow, God will not hear you.
Hosea 14:2a – Take with you words, and turn to the Lord:…
Thus, you have to get God’s word and return it back to the Lord because God’s word is Himself. God will hear your prayers when you pray according to His word; not according to your grammar. That is why many people that pray with calculated English do not have result because their prayers are not in line with the word of God.
It is not enough to locate a scripture. When you locate a scripture, meditate on it until faith rises in you. Meditation can be compared to incubation in agriculture. Meditate on the scripture until faith is built.
1Tim. 4:15 – Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.
Sit with the word of God until the rhema becomes very real to you. A good illustration on meditation is digestion. When you eat food, it has to digest before it nourishes your body. That is how getting the word of God is likened to eating while meditation is likened to digestion. Therefore, the word of God has to settle in your heart before you can produce it.
After meditation, the next step is to open your mouth in prayer because faith is not finished until it is spoken for God to confirm it.
2Cor. 4:13 – We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;
Speak and declare what you have seen in God’s word which you have also meditated on and God will not hesitate to confirm it.
After speaking and declaring what you want to see, believe that it is done.
Mark 11:24 – 24 For this reason I am telling you, whatever things you ask for in prayer [in accordance with God’s will], believe [with confident trust] that you have received them, and they will be given to you. {Amp}
If you want the prayer of faith to work, when you pray for anything, you don’t have to see it before you know that God has answered; you have to know that He has answered before you can see it. If you don’t have faith that God has answered, you cannot see it but the moment you have faith, then you will have what have prayed for.
Believe that you have received answers to your prayers before you see any physical manifestation. From today, as you begin to practice the prayer of faith, may all that you request of the Lord in accordance to His word come to pass in your life speedily in the name of Jesus –Amen!!!
God bless you
Flatimes Notice Board: Until you are born again, God ever abiding presence will never be with you. You must be born again to enjoy continuous victory. Please say the displayed prayer below in faith:
Lord Jesus, come into my life. I accept You as my Lord and Personal Saviour. I believe in my heart You died and rose from the dead to save me. Thank You Lord for saving me, in Jesus name Amen.
If you just prayed the prayer of salvation online please send your testimonies and prayer request to [email protected], 07026385437 OR 08141320204.
Dearly Beloved, it is with great joy and pleasure that I come your way on this wonderful Sunday morning. I want to challenge you as you go through this year wherein God has made you Above Only not to accept anything that is contrary to what God has ordained for you. Stand your ground in the victory that Jesus Christ obtained for you, and you shall see the salvation of the Lord. Often times believers give up too easily, they accept their circumstances and situations as their lot, rather than stand their ground for victory. Beloved, if you must be Above Only this year, you must be careful what you accept.
In 1 Chronicles 4, the Bible tells us an interesting story about a man called Jabez who was described as honourable. In-spite of his honour, his problem started when his mother bore him and gave him a name which literarily means ‘sorrow’. Beloved, Jabez understood what it meant to encounter closed doors in life. He was rejected by men, even though he had no hand in the circumstances of his birth. He was victimized by those who should have shown him love and given him succor. Everywhere Jabez went, sorrow went with him. Can you imagine how he felt? He could have given up and accepted the situation as his lot, after all it was his own mother who put him in the situation in the first place. But not Jabez, he decided he wasn’t going to simply accept it.
“And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine Hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested.” (1Chronicles 4:10 KJV)
Beloved, let us see this same text in the Message Translation:
“Jabez prayed to the God of Israel: “Bless me, O bless me! Give me land, large tracts of land. And provide your personal protection – don’t let evil hurt me”. God gave him what he asked.” (MSG)
Jabez refused to be refused. He refused to just resign and accept the cards life had dealt him. Rather, he decided to call the God who can turn any situation around. And God intervened in the life of Jabez. Jabez’s story changed because he refused to just accept his predicament as final, not after hearing/encountering a God that is able to make impossibilities possible.
Child of God, I don’t know what contrary situation you have accepted as your lot. I don’t know what has garaged you and kept your head bowed low, but one thing I know is we serve a God that can turn any situation around. We serve a God who is not limited by anything or by anyone, we serve the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, His name is Jehovah and there is nothing too hard for him to do. All God is looking for is someone who will refuse to accept that contrary situation, and He will step in.
As you go into this week, be assured that in every area of life, God is committed to blessing you. He will do for you what you cannot do for yourself. He will open your eyes to see the hidden treasure of secret places. He will fill your mouth with testimonies. You will surely, without fail, testify. Your miracle will not be aborted.
Maranatha!
In His Royal service, Dr. Mike Okonkwo The Presiding Bishop
1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
THE MESSAGE:
The verses in our text today are part of what is called the Sermon on the Mount. It is important to note that every word of the Lord Jesus ought to be most precious to professing Christians.
The Sermon on the Mount reveals to us the following: (i) What kind of people Christians ought to be (ii) the character Christians ought to exhibit (iii) the outward walk and inward habit of a follower of Jesus.
It is wisdom to often study these teachings, ponder on each sentence, and prove ourselves by it.
For example, The Lord Jesus calls them blessed, who are poor in spirit (verse 3). He means the humble, and the lowly-minded, the self-abased. He means those who are deeply convinced of their personal need for God. The Lord Jesus calls them blessed, who mourn (verse 4). He means those who sorrow for sin, and grieve daily over their own shortcomings. The Lord Jesus calls them blessed, who are meek (verse 5). He means those who are of a patient and contented spirit.
They are willing to put up with little honour here below. They can bear injuries without resentment. They are not ready to take offence. Blessed are such! They are never losers in the long run. Can you be called blessed?
Prayer: Lord, I commit to a growing knowledge of these principles of the life of the kingdom.
Key Verse: “And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast, and that thine hand might be with me, and that thou wouldest keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! And God granted him that which he requested” (1 Chronicles 4:10).
MESSAGE:
A story is told in Chinua Achebe’s Things fall Apart of a young man called Okonkwo whose father Unoka was a pauper and a loafer. Unoka’s own father was also poor. Okonkwo realising this, decided to have a mindset that he would not live a life of failure like his father Unoka. That made Okonkwo to constantly beat Nwoye his son when he saw the traits of laziness in him, the trait he felt his son had inherited from Unoka. This singular mindset and corresponding actions of Okonkwo eventually made him to become a hero, a success and a pillar to reckon with in his village.
Today’s passage deals with an account of Judah, the most famous of all the tribes of Israel, while a most remarkable person in the text was Jabez because of his prayer life. His name, Jabez means sorrow because he was born in sorrow. Not satisfied with his despicable fate of misery, he decided to turn to God to change his fortune. Eventually God made him to be more honourable than all his brethren. The way to be truly honourable and great is to seek God’s face in fervent prayer and follow it up with diligent work.
We should not be satisfied with our present condition; God can still make it better, if only we can pray. God’s hand was with Jabez to deliver him from the evil of sin, trouble and the evil designed by his enemies. He is not a respecter of persons. As He granted Jabez’s request, He will hear our own prayers. He can heal, deliver, provide, protect, promote and turn our situations around for better, if only we can pray.
Thought For The Day: God still answers the prayers of desperate people.
The Bible In One Year: Acts 3-4
DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
Flatimes’ Notice Board: Until you are born again, God ever abiding presence will never be with you. You must be born again to enjoy continuous victory. Please say the displayed prayer below in faith:
Lord Jesus, come into my life. I accept You as my Lord and Personal Saviour. I believe in my heart You died and rose from the dead to save me. Thank You Lord for saving me, in Jesus name Amen.
If you just prayed the prayer of salvation online please send your testimonies and prayer request to [email protected], 07026385437 OR 08141320204.
TOPIC: You Need A Word from The Lord (Mountain Of Fire and Miracle Ministries, MFM Daily Devotional 9 April 2019)
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Samuel 13-14; Luke 10:1-24
FIRE SCRIPTURE: Joshua 8:1-2
MEMORY VERSE: “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand.” – Psalms 37:23-24
The MESSAGE:
Life in the real sense of it is full of ups and downs. Life changes constantly and brings diverse challenges and opportunities our way. If you suffer defeat today, do not be dismayed and never surrender to the voice saying you will not rise again. Life, like war, is a series of mistakes, defeats and victories. Today is terrible warfare, tomorrow is victory, the next day is testimony, and before the week runs out is another attack from the enemy. Your defeat can never be final if you keep on fighting back believing that God shall surely secure victory for you. All you need is a word from the Lord concerning your current defeat and things shall surely turn around in Jesus’ name.
In our study today, we see how Joshua and Israel strategised to overcome the rude defeat they suffered at Ai. Joshua had consulted God concerning his defeat and he had taken the right steps to eliminate the fundamental cause of the defeat. Next was for him to begin again more intelligently to enable him secure victory in his battle against the voice of defeat. Once the nation of Israel had judged the sin that had defiled their camp, God was free to speak to them in mercy and direct them in their conquest of the land. No matter what mistakes we may make, the worst mistake of all is not to try again, for the victorious Christian life is a series of new beginnings.
A new beginning must start with the word of God which will give the word of encouragement. Discouragement over the past and fear of the future are two reactions that often accompany failure. We look back and remember the mistakes that we made, and then we look ahead and wonder whether there’s any future for people who fail so foolishly. The answer to our discouragement and fear is in hearing and believing God’s word. God had said “fear not” to different kinds of people in various circumstances and His word always met the need. God never discourages His people from making progress. As long as we obey His commandments, we have the the privilege of claiming His promises. God delights “to show Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect (wholly devoted) toward Him” (2 Chronicles 16:9).
In His word is the word of instruction. God always has a plan for His people to follow, and the only way for us to have victory is to obey God’s instructions. In his first attack on Ai, Joshua followed the advice of his spies and used only part of the army; but God told him to take “all the people of war” (Joshua 8:1). The Lord also told Joshua to use an ambush and take advantage of Ai’s self-confidence stemming from Israel’s first defeat (Joshua 7:1-5).
Finally, God gave the soldiers the right to claim the spoils, but they were to burn the city. Had Achan waited only a few days, he could have picked up all the wealth that he wanted. God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with Him. When we run ahead of the Lord, we usually rob ourselves and hurt others.
In His word is the word of promise. “I have given” was God’s promise and Joshua’s guarantee of victory as long as he obeyed the instructions of the Lord. God never made a promise that was too good to be true”, but every promise must be claimed by faith. Unless the promises of God are “mixed with faith” (Hebrews 4:2), they accomplish nothing. Because Israel acted presumptuously in their first attack against Ai, they failed miserably. The promises of God make the difference between faith and presumption. No matter how badly we have failed, we can always get up and begin again; for our God is the God of new beginnings.
In His word are strategies for victory. God changes His methods lest we start depending on our personal experience instead of His divine promises. Joshua and his men simply obeyed God’s instructions by setting an ambush and luring the people of Ai out of their city, and the Lord gave them victory. It’s important that we seek God’s will for each undertaking so that we do not depend on past victories as we plan for the future. May the Lord see you through, in Jesus’ name.
MOTIVATIONAL QUOTE: WHEN GOD SPEAKS TO YOU, YOUR LIFE WILL TAKE A NEW TURN.
PROPHETIC WORD: Your enemies shall not triumph over you.
PRAYER POINTS:
MORNING
Every overconfident enemy, saying my case is a forgone conclusion, I summon you to the judgement throne of God, in the name of Jesus.
O God, behold their threatening, arise and fight for me, in the name of Jesus.
O Lord, give a word that will convert my defeat to victory, in the name of Jesus. EVENING
Wisdom of God, direct me in the way I should go, in the name of Jesus.
Host of Heaven, arise and fight for me today, in the name of Jesus.
I claim divine compensation for my past losses, in the name of Jesus.
I shall laugh last over all my enemies, in the name of Jesus.
MOUNTAIN TOP LIFE is a daily devotional by Dr. D.K Olukoya (General Overseer, Mountain of Fire and Miracle Ministries, Worldwide)
Flatimes Notice Board: Until you are born again, God ever abiding presence will never be with you. You must be born again to enjoy continuous victory. Please say the displayed prayer below in faith:
Lord Jesus, come into my life. I accept You as my Lord and Personal Saviour. I believe in my heart You died and rose from the dead to save me. Thank You Lord for saving me, in Jesus name Amen.
If you just prayed the prayer of salvation online please send your testimonies and prayer request to [email protected], 07026385437 OR 08141320204.
…But this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before. – Philippians 3:13
Failures and disappointments. Aches and pains from the past that just won’t seem to go away. Most of us know what it’s like to suffer from them but too few of us know just what to do about them. So we limp along, hoping somehow they’ll magically stop hurting.
But it never happens that way. In fact, the passing of time often leaves us in worse condition—not better. Because, instead of putting those painful failures behind us, we often dwell on them until they become more real to us than the promises of God. We focus on them until we become bogged down in depression, frozen in our tracks by the fear that if we go on, we’ll only fail again.
I used to get caught in that trap a lot. Then one day when I was right in the middle of a bout with depression, the Lord spoke up inside me and said:
Kenneth, your problem is you’re forming your thoughts off the past instead of the future. Don’t do that! Unbelief looks at the past and says, “See, it can’t be done.” But faith looks at the future and says, “It can be done, and according to the promises of God, it is done!” Then putting past failures behind it forever, faith steps out and acts like the victory’s already been won.
If depression has driven you into a spiritual nose dive, break out of it by getting your eyes off the past and onto your future—a future that’s been guaranteed by Christ Jesus through the great and precious promises in His Word.
Forget about those failures in the past! That’s what God has done (Hebrews 8:12). And if He doesn’t remember them any more, why should you?
The Bible says God’s mercies are new every morning. So if you’ll take God at His Word, you can wake up every morning to a brand-new world. You can live life totally unhindered by the past.
So, do it! Replace thoughts of yesterday’s mistakes with scriptural promises about your future. As you do that, hope will start taking the place of depression. The spiritual aches and pains that have crippled you for so long will quickly disappear. Instead of looking behind you and saying, “I can’t,” you’ll begin to look ahead and say, “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me!”
Scripture Reading: Philippians 3:1-14
This message was written by Kenneth and Gloria Copeland, the leader of the Kenneth Copeland Ministries (www.KCM.org) that specializes in teaching principles of bible faith – prayer, healing, salvation and other biblical topics.
Luke 8:12, ‘Those by the wayside are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.’
Luke 8:4-13
The first type of person Jesus describes is someone who doesn’t understand God’s Word (Mt. 13:19). Before God’s Word can penetrate your heart, you have to understand (not comprehend) what it’s saying. If the Word isn’t understood, then it will be like seed scattered on top of hard-packed ground (the wayside). The birds will eat the seed and there will be no fruit.
Mark 4:15 and Luke 8:12, make it clear that these birds represent Satan, and Mark says the devil comes immediately to steal away the Word. Satan did not have direct access to the Word in any of the other heart-types which Jesus described. Satan cannot steal the Word from us if we will hide it in our hearts (Ps. 119:11). This first type of person simply heard the Word but didn’t receive it. He never applied it to his life, so he lost it.
Notice that Luke links belief and salvation with the Word being sown in our hearts in the same way as Romans 10:14-17. If there is no Word, there cannot be any belief or salvation (I Pet. 1:23). We must preach the Word – not just morality or social issues.
Luke’s use of the word ‘saved’ could include, but is not necessarily limited to, forgiveness of sins. Salvation includes much more than forgiveness of sins. This verse could describe a person who didn’t receive the Word and, therefore, was eternally damned. It could also be describing a Christian who simply doesn’t receive the Word in a certain area of his life and therefore doesn’t experience the victory that Jesus provided for him. Are you experiencing His victory in your life?
This message was written by The Association of Related Ministries International (ARMI) is an extension of Andrew Wommack Ministries (AWM). ARMI is a unique partnership committed to providing resources to help like-minded ministers succeed in a spirit of excellence and to draw from the experience and expertise of both the AWM and Charis Bible College staff. (www.awmi.net).
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