Topic — Fruit of the Spirit; Faith [Open Heavens for Teens 16 December 2018]
Memorise:But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. Hebrews 11:6
Read: Galatians 5:22-23 (KJV)
Bible In One Year: Amos 7-9, Revelation 7
MESSAGE:
Faith is one of the most important attributes of a Christian. The Bible says without faith, it is impossible to please God. Christianity is based on faith; we do not see God, yet we believe He is alive – that is faith. With this, you should know that your claim to be a Christian is a very funny joke if you do not have faith.
Asides this foundational faith, a Christian is meant to be full of faith; a genuine child of God must have an unwavering confidence in God’s Words and promises. But this world is filled with distractions and doubt inducing circumstances, hence having blind faith in God is an impossible task for anyone who isn’t filled with the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit in you that will feed your inside with faith in God. Afterwards you are entrusted with the responsibility to strengthen that faith by studying the Word of God and getting yourself acquainted with His numerous promises.
Prayer Point: Sweet Holy Spirit, please fill my heart with faith, and give me the grace to strengthen that faith by studying Your Word constantly.
My faith looks up to Thee,
Thou Lamb of Calvary,
Savior divine!
Now hear me while I pray,
Take all my guilt away,
Oh, let me from this day
Be wholly Thine!
May Thy rich grace impart
Strength to my fainting heart,
My zeal inspire!
As Thou hast died for me,
Oh, may my love to Thee
Pure, warm and changeless be,
A living fire!
While life’s dark maze I tread,
And griefs around me spread,
Be Thou my guide;
Bid darkness turn to day,
Wipe sorrow’s tears away,
Nor let me ever stray
From Thee aside.
When ends life’s transient dream,
When death’s cold sullen stream
Shall o’er me roll;
Blest Savior, then, in love,
Fear and distrust remove;
Oh, bear me safe above,
A ransomed soul.
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.
Topic: Winning The Home Battle [DCLM Daily Manna 16 December 2018 Daily Devotional by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi]
Text: Judges 6:6-16 (KJV)
Key Verse:“And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee?”(Judges 6:14).
MESSAGE:
One of the toughest battles to fight is the battle within. It is a lot easier to identify external foes, study their tactics and take them on in battle. But most times, we hardly recognise the internal foes or we are not bold enough to see them as deadly foes that must be defeated. Our lack of courage may be due to our fear of the reaction of those who will be affected by our decisions or because of whatever temporary pleasure we may forfeit for fighting this battle.
Gideon faced this kind of tough task in the first leadership assignment God gave him. The biggest problem he faced was not the Midianites, but his people who were given wholly to the worship of Baal. His first task therefore was to throw down the idol of his father’s house, signalling his disgust for idolatry. That was sure to incur the wrath of his people, but he had to do this otherwise they would never have victory over their external foes. And thank God, he did!
Before we can take on external enemies, we have to first examine potential problems in our own souls. Check up if you have thrown down those idols of “Baal” around you. They may be long-held family traditions and practices that run contrary to the will and word of God. They may be bottled-up enmity and grudges against another; or a long-cherished carnal indulgence that hinders you from giving your best to the Lord. Understand that no amount of prayers and deliverances conducted for you can give you total and permanent victory until you willingly throw down those idols! Take the step now.
Thought For The Day: It is wisdom to make those changes that make people around you uncomfortable.
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.
Open Heaven 16 December 2018 Sunday Daily Devotional by Pastor E. A. Adeboye – The Fourth Man in the Furnace
Topic: The Fourth Man in the Furnace (Open Heaven 16 December 2018)
Memorise:“When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.”- Isaiah 43:2
Read: Daniel 3:20-30 (KJV)
20 And he commanded the most mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace.
21 Then these men were bound in their coats, their hosen, and their hats, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
22 Therefore because the king’s commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king.
25 He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire.
27 And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king’s counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.
28 Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.
29 Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and language, which speak any thing amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill: because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort.
30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, in the province of Babylon.
Bible in One Year: Hosea 10-14, John 12:9-26
Open Heaven 16 December 2018 Sunday MESSAGE:
Our memory verse reminds us of God’s promise to be with His children whenever they pass through the storms, rivers and fires of life. We see this promise literarily fulfilled in the lives of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego when they were confronted with Nebuchadnezzar’s fiery furnace. For your own good, you need to understand that these words proclaimed by God in Isaiah 43:2 are not empty promises. To the three Hebrew boys, the Lord who helped the Israelites walk through the waters during their exodus from Egypt was also able to deliver them from the fire of Nebuchadnezzar’s furnace in accordance to His promise. In contrast to these young men, many people today would not want to take this promise of God literarily. However, the experience of the three Hebrew boys shows that none of God’s promise will go unfulfilled in our lives if we hold unto them.
Let us consider what the young Hebrew men did to draw the presence of the Fourth Man into the furnace and see how it applies to each one of us. Essentially, they decided to be different and lived a separated life in the land of unbelievers. They took a collective decision with Daniel not to defile themselves with pagan lifestyles and delicacies (Daniel 1:8-17). A proverb in my native tongue says, “There is a tendency for a child to change his good name in a foreign land”. This was not the case with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. For this reason, the Lord of Host Himself came to join them when they were thrown into the burning furnace. The fourth man in the furnace was no other person than the Son of the Living God (Daniel 13:25).
Beloved, if God could fulfill His promise in Isaiah 43:2 in the lives of these men, He will also fulfill this promise to us. However, you need to ask yourself if you are living a separated life. Is there any difference between you and everyone else who does not know your God? Do you behave one way in church and another way outside church? If someone spends time with you, can they indeed say that you have been with Jesus? You need to live a life that gives a positive answer to these questions. I decree into your life today that the grace to live a separated life will come upon you in Jesus’ Name. The waters of life will not drown you, and the fire of the enemy will not burn you in Jesus’ Name.
Open Heaven 16 December 2018 Sunday Prayer Point:
Sweet Holy spirit, I ask that You convict my heart to live a separated life daily.
Open Heaven 16 December 2018 Sunday Hymn 5: I Have Decided To Follow Jesus
I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
No turning back, no turning back.
The world behind me, the cross before me;
The world behind me, the cross before me;
The world behind me, the cross before me;
No turning back, no turning back.
Though none go with me, still I will follow;
Though- none go with me, still I will follow;
Though none go with me, still I will follow;
No turning back, no turning back.
My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
My cross I’ll carry, till I see Jesus;
No turning back, no turning back.
Will you decide now to follow Jesus?
Will you decide now to follow Jesus?
Will you decide now to follow Jesus?
No turning back, no turning back.
Open Heaven 16 December 2018 Sunday Daily Devotional 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. The Open Heavens devotional application is available across all mobile platforms and operating systems: iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Mobile and PC. Open Heaven 16 December 2018 Sunday Daily Devotional.
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.
Pastor Wang Yi wrote in September that he would “categorically” deny any “filth” he was accused of by authorities but he would serve any sentence if jailed.
He said: “Those who lock me up will one day be locked up by angels. Those who interrogate me will finally be questioned and judged by Christ.
“When I think of this, the Lord fills me with a natural compassion and grief toward those who are attempting to and actively imprisoning me.
“Pray that the Lord would use me, that he would grant me patience and wisdom, that I might take the gospel to them.”
The note was handed to colleagues on the basis it should be shared publicly if he ever became detained for more than 48 hours.
The senior pastor was among more than 100 people held at the Early Rain Covenant Church in the south-western city of Chengdu, Sichuan province on Sunday.
Wang’s elderly mother told the South China Morning Post her son had been arrested “for allegedly inciting subversion of state power”.
The letter indicates a strong disdain for the Chinese authorities, with Wang accusing them of “wickedness” in “depriving people of the freedoms of religion and of conscience”.
It continued: “As a pastor of a Christian church, I must denounce this wickedness openly and severely.
“The calling that I have received requires me to use non-violent methods to disobey those…
Supporters of Asia Bibi, who spent eight years on death row, say she will spend the festive season under close protection in a mystery location.
Wilson Chowdhry from the British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA) said: “Despite her joy at being free, I cannot believe that Asia Bibi is feeling like much of a winner today.
“Especially as she remains under police protection in Pakistan at a secret location, unable to even exit the room she is in for fear she will be instantly killed…”
Reunited with her husband, the mother-of-five remains separated from her wider family – amid a bid by hard-line Islamists to reverse her acquittal in October. They want to see Ms Bibi publicly executed.
In an update to supporters, the BPCA said it had received confirmation from Pakistani authorities that a petition challenging the Supreme Court ruling will be heard in January.
Ms Bibi was sentenced to death in 2010 after being convicted of blasphemy. She had been accused of insulting the Islamic prophet Muhammad following a row with a group of Muslim woman over a water cup.
Meanwhile, Christians are being urged to pray for more than a dozen believers in Pakistan who remain in prison while their appeals against blasphemy convictions are pending.
What does it mean to give? How does it look? You may know intuitively that you should give but not know much beyond that. The good news is that the Bible tells us what our giving should look like. Our generous God reveals to us four giving principles throughout Scripture.
The Christmas season is upon us. Despite all the fun of this holiday, this time of year can also be difficult for pastors. Here are several reasons why:
You can debate how important relevance is all day long (and many do), but the truth is irrelevant leaders eventually make less impact on the team around them, and eventually almost no impact on the next generation, except for perhaps an example of what not to be like.
So what can we do to help outsiders feel like welcome, without turning church into a preference-driven smorgasbord of gospel-lite hors d’oeuvres? In other words, how do we make the gospel comprehensible to those who’ve had little or no relationship to it? My suggestion is simply this: We use gospel hospitality to extend an invitation to gospel reality.
The US evangelist spoke amid plans by Italian bishops for a new version which would read “do not abandon us to temptation” instead of “lead us not into temptation”.
Speaking to Fox News Channel, the 66-year-old said: “There possibly could be a translation error with that one word. I don’t know.
“I’m still going to say it the way that I memorised it as a boy, that my mother taught me.
The Italian Bishops Conference said last month that its proposed revision of the Lord’s Prayer will be submitted to the Holy See for approval, according to the ANSA news agency.
Rev Graham continued: “We do recognise that there are translation errors and there are a lot of translations out there in the English language and some of them vary a little bit.
“But you have to be very, very careful and I know the Catholics have been very careful as they’ve studied this for 16 years.”
The Catholic Church in France has already revised the Lord’s Prayer.
Stay up to date with the latest news stories from a Christian perspective. Sign up to our daily newsletter and receive more…
The temporary attraction will appear in the western end of the Nave at Norwich Cathedral between 7th and 18th August 2019 as part of a special exhibition called Seeing It Differently.
Rev Canon Andy Bryant, Canon for Mission and Pastoral Care, said: “A cathedral may not be the natural home of a helter skelter but that is precisely part of the draw.
“We will be doing what cathedrals have always done: helping people see things differently and make connections with the things of God.”
Guests are being promised “unique” views from the slide of the historic cathedral which boasts a medieval roof depicting Biblical scenes.
Rev Bryant added: “The helter skelter and all the other activities will be a way for visitors old and new to explore Norwich Cathedral in an entirely unique way and we hope people of all ages will enjoy taking part…”
During the special event, visitors will be able to lie down on yoga mats in the east end of the nave and admire the cathedral’s 69ft-high ceiling.
A blindfolded trail will challenge people to navigate a special route around Norwich Cathedral, using their senses of hearing and touch.
One local resident told the Daily Mail said: “It is basically dumbing down our faith? Whatever next – goldfish in the font so kids can feed them?”
Rev Canon James Allison, 57, from St John the Baptist Church in Coley near Halifax said some members of the congregation had “issues” about the practise. which has Hindu and Buddhist roots.
Referring to the church’s parochial church council, he told the South West News Service (SWNS): “We had a meeting and took the unanimous decision not to renew the yoga class agreement in the hall.
“Yoga is a rainbow of different experiences and some of our congregation have issues with some styles and teachings.”
Instructor Melissa Makan said she had been using St John the Baptist for her yoga nidra sessions for the last seven months when she received a text “out of the blue” asking her find a new location.
The 37-year-old was quoted by the SWNS as saying: “It’s ridiculous.
“Yoga isn’t a religion. If I could explain it to him, or he could come and see it for himself, but they haven’t tried to understand it.
“My style and my teachings have zero Sanskrit words, it has no mantras, the language is completely clean and that’s because I’m personally not religious.
“What he is doing is causing a division when the world is already so divided, he is openly saying that’s ok. I just think, ‘what are you representing?'”
The Church of England does not exercise a blanket ban over yoga classes on church premises, the MP who represents the Church of England in the House of Commons said last…
Topic: Leading [Joyce Meyer Devotional 15 December 2018]
…[Love] is not rude (unmannerly) and does not act unbecomingly.… — 1 Corinthians 13:5 (AMPC)
In order to reach our goals, you and I must follow God’s leading. People will offer us a lot of advice, and some of it may be good, but some of it may not. Or it may be good advice, but simply not what will work for us.
It’s important that we always look to God first and listen for His guidance and instruction.
God has created us as unique individuals, and He does not lead us all in the same way. So, if you want to win your race, you will need to find your own running style or your own way of doing things.
Of course, we can learn from other people, but we dare not try to copy them at the cost of losing our own individuality. Appreciate the advice and example of others, but follow God’s leading in your life.
Prayer Starter: Lord, I know You have a great plan for my life, and You desire to lead and guide me every step of the way. Help me to seek and follow Your leadership in my life more than anyone or anything else. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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