Topic: A Little Bit of Heaven on Earth [Kenneth Copeland Devotional 20 December 20 2018]

Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; forbearing one another, and forgiving one another…even as Christ forgave you. – Colossians 3:12-13

Living in a home filled with the love and the peace of God Himself is almost like living in heaven right here on earth. We all know that’s true. And we long to live in such a home. Yet, time and time again, we shortchange our families. We spend our kindest words and our most winning smiles on those beyond our front door.

Have you ever wondered why?

The answer is simpler than you might suspect. Spiritually speaking, your family is under attack. You see, it is not only one of your most precious gifts, when it’s operating in harmony, it’s one of your most powerful resources. Satan knows that even if you don’t—and he’s out to destroy it.

His battle plan is simple. He will do everything he can to create strife in your home. He’ll stir up feelings of self-pity and jealousy. He’ll encourage you to nurse resentments and harbor bitterness. And through it all, his purpose remains the same: to divide and destroy your home.

When God’s people get in harmony with each other, miracles start to happen. Their agreement creates an atmosphere in which God’s supernatural, miracle-working power is free to flow! So Satan is constantly tempting us to spoil that atmosphere, to foul things up by being at odds with each other. All too often we fall prey to his tactics simply because we don’t realize just how dangerous strife really is. One close look at the Word of God will solve that problem, however. James 3:16 says, “Where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.”

Don’t open the door of your home to Satan by allowing your family the “luxury” of a few quarrels.

Stop the destruction before it starts. Anchor yourself to God’s Word. Find out what He has to say about the power of agreement. Stop looking at your family from your own limited perspective and start seeing it as God sees it—as a powerhouse! That way you won’t drift helplessly into an argument every time a gust of emotion blows through your home.

Determine right now not to let the devil have your family. Instead, pray for them, support them and love them. Bring them together, so you can all enjoy a little bit of heaven on earth.

Scripture Reading: Colossians 3:12-25

If you missed yesterday devotional, please click to read “Kenneth and Gloria Copeland’s Daily Devotional Here’’

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.

Topic: Be Filled With The Holy Ghost [Andrew Wommack Devotional 20 December 2018]

Luke 24:49 “And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.”

This filling of the Holy Ghost is subsequent to the born-again experience.

Paul reveals in Rom. 10:9, that a person has to confess with his mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in his heart that Jesus was raised from the dead, before he can be saved.

It is possible to be saved, yet not have what Jesus said was the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Since the Holy Spirit is now given freely and we don’t have to tarry for His coming, we can receive salvation and the baptism of the Holy Spirit at the same time. However, it is not automatic. We must ask and believe for the baptism of the Holy Ghost, just as we believed for salvation.

Speaking in tongues is unique to the Church Age. This is because when a person speaks in tongues, his new born-again spirit is speaking (1 Cor. 14:14), not his mind. Before salvation, our spirit was the part of us that was, “dead in trespasses and sins.” Until we received a new spirit (2 Cor. 5:17), the Holy Ghost could not give us this supernatural communication with the Father.

There are two kinds of speaking in tongues which are clearly spoken of in 1 Corinthians 13:1. They are called “the tongues of men and of angels.” The tongues of men are the known languages in which the disciples spoke. The tongues of angels, or heavenly languages, are the tongues that all Spirit-filled believers can speak, and are what Paul spoke about in 1 Corinthians 12-14.

Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would lead us into all truth and teach us all things. Receiving the baptism of the Holy Ghost is the single most important key to receiving revelation knowledge from God.

If you missed yesterday devotional, please click to read Andrew Wommack Daily Devotional

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).

Topic: The Spiritual Realm [Billy Graham Devotional 20 December 2018]

He was zealous for my sake . . . — Numbers 25:11

It is strange that the world accepts enthusiasm in every realm but the spiritual. The world appreciates and understands emotion and enthusiasm, until it becomes a religious fervor—then immediately it is suspect. When you bring a grand and glorious abandon to your dedication to the Lord Jesus Christ, you are thought by many of your neighbors to be mad, to have “gone too far” in religion.

The whole history of missionary enterprise is filled with names like William Carey, Hudson Taylor, John Paton, David Livingstone, and others, who were thought by their generations to be mad. Their dedication was beyond the understanding of those who loved the smugness and the ease of contemporary life . . . And yet, in the last analysis, who are the mad ones? Are they not the complacent, self-centered, and smug who are so selfish that they tire of their own smugness, tire of their pleasures, and even tire of themselves?

Prayer for the day: Let me rededicate my life to You, with complete abandonment, Lord Jesus.

“If you missed yesterday devotional, please click to read Billy Graham’s Daily Devotional HERE

Written by Billy Graham, Founder of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association(BGEA). BGEA exists to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ by every effective means and to equip the church and others to do the same.

Topic: You Have God’s DNA [TREM Devotional 20 December 2018]

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17

The day you gave your life to Christ, you not only crossed from sin to life, you also became a member of a separate family. If you clearly understand this fact you will never explain away why you should have certain diseases. Have you noticed that the first thing that happens when you get into the hospital is that they want to know if someone in the family tree had a similar disease before? The moment you confirm that one person does, they begin to treat you for it and see it as normal; but when you come to the realization of who you are in Christ, you will not accept any disease as normal. You will rise in the Spirit and stand tall against it because the Word of God rightly declares that you are a new creation the moment you gave your life to Christ.

The way I love to explain that scripture “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature” is that he is a new specie of being that never existed before. The Living Bible puts it this way: 2 Cor. 5:17 (TLB) “When someone becomes a Christian, he becomes a brand new person inside. He is not the same anymore. A new life has begun!” Are you a Christian? Then you don’t have to live in the past. You are not refurbished. You are not inseparable with the world. Your spirit is totally new and the Spirit controls the physical; when you meditate on your new nature, everything about you begins to change. Then the popular song becomes true: “The things I used to do, I do them no more; the things I used to say, I say them no more because there is a great change, since I’m born again …”

Take time to think about the new creature reality in this season as we celebrate the birth of Jesus.

Further Reading: 2 Corinthians 5:12-21

Daily Bible Reading: Morning- Micah 1-3; Evening- Revelation 11

“If you missed yesterday devotional click HERE to read TREM Daily Devotional by Dr. Mike Okonkwo’’

Written by Dr. Mike Okonkwo; Is the Presiding Bishop of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM); a versatile man of God with over 30 years of dedicated service unto the Lord.

Topic: Following the Leader [Our Daily Bread 20 December 2018 Devotional]

Read: Luke 9:21–24, Bible in a Year: Micah 1–3; Revelation 11

Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. Luke 9:23

In the sky over our house, three fighter jets scream through the sky—flying in formation so close together they appear to be one. “Wow,” I say to my husband, Dan. “Impressive,” he agrees. We live near an Air Force base and it’s not unusual to see such sights.

Every time these jets fly over, however, I have the same question: How can they fly so close together and not lose control? One obvious reason, I learned, is humility. Trusting that the lead pilot is traveling at precisely the correct speed and trajectory, the wing pilots surrender any desire to switch directions or question their leader’s path. Instead, they get in formation and closely follow. The result? A more powerful team.

It’s no different for followers of Jesus. He says, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23).

His path was one of self-denial and suffering, which can be hard to follow. But to be His effective disciples, we too are invited to put aside selfish desires and pick up spiritual burdens daily—serving others first instead of ourselves, for example—as we closely follow Him.

It’s quite a sight, this humbling, close walk with God. Following His lead, and staying so close, we can appear with Christ as one. Then others won’t see us, they’ll see Him. There’s a simple word for what that looks like: “Wow!”

Prayer: Please, God, draw us close to You. Fill us with Your Spirit of love and joy and peace. Enable us to be a shining light in our world.

Our lives are a window through which others can see Jesus.

INSIGHT
Jesus had been proclaiming His identity and mission for years, and now His closest followers understood who He is. But Jesus answers Peter’s confession that Jesus is “God’s Messiah” (Luke 9:20) with a curious warning “not to tell this to anyone” (v. 21). Jesus says in no uncertain terms that the disciples should keep quiet about His identity. Why would Jesus tell them not to let people know who He is? The answer may be in verse 22, specifically in the word must. Spreading Jesus’s true identity may have interfered with His larger mission. He needed to die, and if the crowds knew He was the Messiah, they may have taken actions that might have interfered, such as making Him king by force (John 6:15) or perhaps stoning Him (10:31). Jesus told them to keep His identity a secret for the sake of His mission—“to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).
J.R. Hudberg

If you missed yesterday devotional, please click to read “Our Daily Bread Devotionals HERE”

This message was written By Patricia Raybon [Our Daily Bread Ministries.]

MFM Mountain Top Life Daily Devotional 20 December 2018 By Dr. D.K Olukoya – Bearing Fruits in Old Age (II)

TOPIC: Bearing Fruits in Old Age (II) (Mountain Of Fire and Miracle Ministries, MFM Daily Devotional 20 December 2018)

FIRE SCRIPTURE: 2 Chronicles 10:6-8

MEMORY VERSE: “The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness.” –Proverbs 16:31

The MESSAGE:

The retirement age should not be the time to idle away. You might have disengaged from active work life, but you are not expected to retire from serving the Lord and bearing fruits, even in your old age. An old or aged believer has a wealth of experience in both physical and spiritual matters that young people can benefit from. Bearing fruit in old age entails using your life, talent, time and other resources to serve God. Only those who abide in Christ in old age can bring forth good fruits for Him.

Let us examine some of the things you can do to bear fruits in old age: First, you can witness for the Lord. Sharing the gospel and winning souls are highly rewarding spiritual exercises. God cares about the perishing souls all over the world and will reward you if you reach out to them with the Great Commission and save them from eternal damnation. Second, you can intercede, as Simeon and Anna did, that the will of God be done in people’s lives, the Church as well as in nations of the world. In addition, you can use your old age to fast and pray for Christian marriages and homes as well as for pastors and ministers of the gospel. Depending on your gift and calling, you can devote your old age to counselling and mentoring young people, especially Christians. Remember that Moses was 80 years old when God called him and he served God faithfully till be died at 120 years old. Caleb was still strong and active in God’s service at a ripe old age.

Beloved, the final phase of life called old age is when you should assess your walk with God, align yourself with Him and intensify your preparation to spend eternity in heaven. It is the time to let others know all the pitfalls of life and guide them not to make the mistakes you made in different areas of life, including the spiritual life. It is when you play these roles that you are considered as being fruitful in old age and heaven will reward you handsomely.

MOTIVATIONAL QUOTE:
DIVINE EMPOWERMENT IS ENCAPSULATED IN “BE FRUITFUL AND MULTIPLY; REPLENISH THE EARTH AND SUBDUE IT”.

PROPHETIC WORD:
Power to bring forth and produce your kind in righteousness is comferred on you.

PRAYER POINTS:

MORNING

1. Father, give me the grace and strength to witness and win souls for you even in my old age, in Jesus’ name.
2. Lord, make me an untiring prayer warrior and intercesssor throughout my lifetime, in Jesus’ name.
3. Father, make me a positive influence and inspiration for the younger generation, in the name of Jesus.

EVENING

1. O Lord, help me to abide in You, so that I keep bearing fruit in Jesus’ name.
2. My love for the Lord will not grow cold in old age, in Jesus’ name.
3. I will not lose my heavenly focus in old age, in Jesus’ name.
4. I receive the grace to be a Godly counsellor to the younger generation, in Jesus’ name.

“If you missed yesterday devotional, please click to read MFM Mountain Top Life Daily Devotional HERE https://flatimes.com/category/mfm/

MOUNTAIN TOP LIFE is a daily devotional by Dr. D.K Olukoya (General Overseer, Mountain of Fire and Miracle Ministries, Worldwide)

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Topic — Saving; A Requirement Of Wealth [Open Heavens for Teens 20 December 2018]

Memorise: There is treasure to be desired and oil in the dwelling of the wise; but a foolish man spendeth it up. – Proverbs 21:20

Read: Genesis 41:29-36 (KJV)

Bible In One Year: Micah 4-5, Revelation 11

MESSAGE:

One of the major ways God provides for us is through money. Going by this, it would mean that the money we have isn’t ours, but God’s. Hence, God is very interested in what we do with the money He gives us. Asides spending the money wisely and for His glory, saving part of the money shows good stewardship on our part.

A good saving culture can never be over emphasized. As a teen, you might think that you have no reason to save since your parents provide your needs. According to our Bible reading for today, no one could ever have known that a terrible famine was waiting to happen. If they hadn’t saved up when they had plenty, they would have died when the famine came. That is what saving does; it provides a sure covering on rainy days. How much do you get daily from your parents? You should decide to save up a bit of that money.

Key Point: A wise man saves for his future, a fool doesn’t.

Also Read: Teen Open Heaven Daily Devotional by Pastor Adeboye

Hymn 3:

1. There shall be showers of blessing
   This is the promise of love;
   There shall be season refreshing
   Sent from the Savior above

Showers of blessing,
Showers of blessing we need;
Mercy drop ’round are falling,
But for the showers we plead.

1. There shall be showers of blessing
   Precious reviving again;
   Over the hills and the valleys,
   Sound of abundance of rain.
2. There shall be showers of blessing
   Send them upon us O Lord
   Grant to us a refreshing;
   Come now and honor Thy Word.
3. There shall be showers of blessing
   Oh that today thy might fall,
   Now as to God we are confessing,
   Now as on Jesus we call!

Daily Devotional for Teen’s guide was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer’s Ministries.