Topic: Power of Touch [Our Daily Bread 17 November 2018 Devotional]

Read: Mark 1:40–45, Bible in a Year: Ezekiel 5–7; Hebrews 12

Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. Mark 1:41 nlt

Dr. Paul Brand, twentieth-century pioneer medical missionary to India, saw firsthand the stigma associated with leprosy. During an appointment, he touched a patient to reassure him treatment was possible. Tears began to stream down the man’s face. An attendant explained the tears to Dr. Brand, saying, “You touched him and no one has done that for years. They are tears of joy.”

Early in His ministry, Jesus was approached by a man with leprosy, an ancient label for all types of infectious skin diseases. Because of his disease the man was required by the Old Testament law to live outside his community. If the sick man accidentally found himself in close proximity to healthy people, he had to call out, “Unclean! Unclean!” so they could avoid him (Leviticus 13:45–46). As a result, the man may have gone months or years without human contact.

Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. Jesus had the power and authority to heal people with just a word (Mark 2:11–12). But as Jesus encountered a man whose physical illness left him feeling isolated and rejected, His touch assured the man that he was not alone but accepted.

As God gives us opportunities, we can extend grace and show compassion with a gentle touch that conveys dignity and value. The simple, healing power of human touch goes a long way to remind hurting people of our care and concern.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for the personal way You reached out to care for hurting people. Help me to follow Your example and extend compassion in my actions.

Caring for others may include a compassionate touch.

INSIGHT:
After Jesus healed the leper, why did He warn him not to tell anyone? (Mark 1:44). The Scriptures don’t reveal Jesus’s motive, but what follows could provide a hint: “But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing.” The first priority was to show himself to the priest. Why? In ancient Israel, leprosy was seen as a physical disease with spiritual implications. Therefore, when the first symptoms were experienced, the afflicted person would go to the priest—not the doctor—to be diagnosed (Leviticus 13). If cleansing took place, the priest would need to confirm that healing. Additionally, the priest was required to offer a specific and unusually detailed sacrifice after a leper was cleansed (Leviticus 14). In the entire Old Testament there are only two recorded healings of lepers-Miriam (Numbers 12:10–15) and Naaman the Syrian (2 Kings 5:1–14), and in neither case does the Scripture record that this specific, detailed sacrifice was made. Therefore, it’s quite possible that the first time this specific sacrifice was offered was in response to the healing described in Mark. But first the leper must “show [himself] to the priest” to have his healing confirmed.

Bill Crowder

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

This message was written By Lisa Samra [Our Daily Bread Ministries.]

Topic: The Blessing – An Antidote For Poverty [Seeds of Destiny 17 November 2018 Devotional]

Scripture: The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it. Proverbs 10:22

Thought For The Day: It is not possible for a person to be blessed and die a pauper.

It is confirmed from Scripture that everyone who was blessed by God was never permitted to beg. The Blessing is the antidote for poverty and wretchedness. It catapults the blessed into the realm of abundance and greatness.

In Genesis 12:2, God told Abraham, And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great;…
So, blessed people are strangers to smallness. It is not possible for a person to be blessed and die a pauper.

Poverty and the Blessing are diametrically opposed, mutually exclusive and diagonally antagonistic.

For instance, if a person is from a family where wretchedness has held everyone bound, and the Blessing of God comes on him, that would mark the expiry date of that wretchedness in his life. The Blessing breaks the spells of littleness and wretchedness off the lives of the blessed and positions them as generational resource controllers.

Now, it is possible for someone to be rich and not be blessed; such riches have no future; the eternal life of such a person as well as his/her access to the other packages of the Blessing like peace, good health, marital harmony, fulfilment, etc., would not be guaranteed.

Beloved, I see you shift to the realm of abundance and greatness, in Jesus’ Name.

Remember this: It is not possible for a person to be blessed and die a pauper.

Assignments:
1. Be fully involved in covenant practices like tithing, giving to the poor/less privileged, giving for Kingdom projects, etc.
2. Refuse to act or think small; think big and expect big.
3. Get and read a copy of the book titled 21 Uncommon Keys to Financial Overflow by Dr Paul Enenche.

FOR FURTHER UNDERSTANDING, GET THIS MESSAGE: THE POWER OF THE BLESSING

Prayer: Lord, thank You for Your Blessing upon my life. I reject the life of littleness and wretchedness. I walk in wealth and greatness, in Jesus’ Name.

Daily Bible Reading: Ezekiel 35:1 to 36:38, James 1:1 to 18, Psalm 116:1 to 19, Proverbs 27:23 to 27

Quote: Have a mind that can expand; a mind that can continuously see bigger and greater things in God….Culled from 21 UNCOMMON KEYS TO FINANCIAL OVERFLOW by Dr Paul Enenche.

Amazing Fact: A completely blind chameleon would still take on the colour of its environment.

Today In History: 17/11/1962 – President John F. Kennedy dedicates Washington Dulles International Airport, serving the Washington, D.C., region.

Also Read: Click HERE to read Other Inspirational Messages by Pastor Paul Enenche

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.

Topic: The Power to Create [Kenneth Copeland Devotional 17 November 2018]

Therefore be imitators of God [copy Him and follow His example] as well-beloved children [imitate their father]. – Ephesians 5:1, The Amplified Bible

Creating new things, changing old things. Because you and I are made in the image of God that’s something we’re always trying to do. But if we’re to be successful at it, we need to learn a lesson about it from the Creator Himself, our very own heavenly Father.

You know, He didn’t just come upon creation by accident and say, “Well, what do you know! There’s light!” No, before He began to make His universe, He first had a desired result (an inner idea, or image, of what He wanted to create) and then said, “Light be!” and light was.

If we’re going to imitate Him, we’re going to have to put the principle of the inner image to work too.

“But, Brother Copeland,” you say, “that was God. Surely you don’t expect me to try to act like God.” I most certainly do. Ephesians 5:1 says to!

Let me warn you about something though. Don’t waste your time sitting around trying to dream up a positive inner image all on your own. That’s nothing more than positive thinking, and while it’s better than negative thinking (or not thinking at all), it will eventually fall flat.

If you’re a born-again child of Almighty God, God has given you the principle and the power to make permanent changes in your life and in your circumstances.

Think again about creation. God wanted light. So He said, “Let there be light.” The words He spoke were directly related to His inner image. He used His Words to get that image from the inside to the outside.

What you need to use as the basis for your inner image and for the words you speak is the Word of God. The Word has supernatural power. And if you fill that Word with faith and speak it out, it will work for you to change your life and circumstances as surely as it did for your Father.

Find out what real creativity is all about. Dig into the Word of God and start rebuilding your world today.

Scripture Reading: 2 Corinthians 4:6-13

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: Our Life Is Not Our Own [Andrew Wommack Devotional 17 November 2018]

Luke 22:49 “When they which were about him saw what would follow, they said unto him, Lord, shall we smite with the sword?”

The Lordship of Jesus is one of the central themes of scripture. It is clear that many times the word “Lord,” when referring to Jesus, is equivalent to the divine name “Yahweh” or “Jehovah.” To acknowledge Jesus as Lord is to acknowledge His deity (Jn. 20:28).

What it means to give Jesus Lordship in our lives, is to recognize His right to rule in our lives, by right of creation (Jn. 1:3) and right of redemption.

“For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Cor. 6:20).

One of the most damaging attitudes of our time is the exaltation of self over others. Personal rights have been promoted at the expense of others. This is not good for society and it is certainly not the way God expects His body to operate.

As Christians, we need to develop a continual awareness that our lives are not our own. We do not have the liberty to do as we please. We should present our body as a living sacrifice unto God, recognizing that this is just our reasonable duty to the one who gave His life for us (Rom. 12:1).

The Lordship of Jesus should be the determining factor in every action of a Christian (Rom. 14:7-10). Every thought and action should pass the test, “Is this what my Lord Jesus wants me to do or think?” If the answer is not a definite “yes,” then it shouldn’t be done. “Whatsoever is not of faith is sin” (Rom. 14:23).

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).