PREAMBLE: We give glory to God who has given us victory by Strengthening us above all our enemies and has put a new song in our mouth. Arising from the last Holy Ghost Congress, we have started singing Songs of Victory. It is therefore not surprising that God gave our father in the Lord, The General Oversea; Pastor E.A. Adeboye “Stronger than Our Enemies” as the theme for the first Holy Ghost Service in the Year 2018. He reiterated in his prophecies for this year that “Many of us will triumph over our enemies” because it is a year of reward when many will “count down comprehensive victories”. May God help us to experience the harvest of these prophesies in full. May we have an unprecedented victories in all spheres of life that will keep us singing with an overflowing joy in Jesus name. Amen.

As we know that whatever is good require prayers, the following prayer points will be helpful as we wait upon the Lord in a declared 50 days of fasting and prayers starting from Thursday 11th January to Thursday 1st March, 2018. May you be mightily blessed, as we pray through in the mighty Name of Jesus.

THURSDAY 11th Jan 2018
DAY 1 WORSHIP AND PRAISES

• Intense praise and worship Psalm 124
• Praise God for being God Almighty. Gen 17:1
• Let your soul bless the lord and praise His Holy name Psalms 34:1
• Let us praise Him for the manifestation of Signs and Wonders since the establishment of RCCG.
• Psa 150:1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power.
• Psa 150:2 Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness.
• Psa 150:3 Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp.
• Psa 150:4 Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs.
• Psa 150:5 Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals.
• Psa 150:6 Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.

Topic: Handling Family Challenges (1)

Dear Reader,

Happy New Year! It is the first edition for the year and it holds many blessings for you. It is my prayer that all that God intents for your family this year be achieved in Jesus’ name! From recent observations, it is clear that topmost on the counselling list of churches and centres are family-related issues. Many people have questions on the family for which few people seem to have adequate answers to. The general impression is that no human being can enjoy total success in family life.

However, this is far from the truth. God, the originator of marriage and the family, designed it to be successful and enjoyable. His purpose for instituting marriage remains the same. Nothing can alter it – not even civilisation, technological advancement or philosophical reasoning. However, the fact that many are frustrated, unhappy, fed up and failing does not tamper with the truth of God’s Word. Marriage is designed for success. This truth must be appreciated in order to appropriate it in your marriage. The key to family success can only be found in the Word. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success (Joshua 1:8). Success in all areas of life is God’s will for you, but it does not come by chance, it must be consciously acquired from the Word.

A successful family is where there is joy, abundance, rest and love. This is God’s utmost desire for you. Just like every game or sport has rules guiding it, there are rules to follow in order to have a successful family life. To break any of these rules does not only disqualify you from having a successful family, but also results in challenges in the family. Throughout this month, I shall teach on this important topic: Handling Family Challenges.

What Are Challenges?

Challenges are defined as difficult tasks that test someone’s ability. So, handling family challenges can be said to be the ability to deal with, manage or control some difficult situations in the family. In other words, it means taking care of the family by removing every destructive element in it.

There are some little foxes that serve as threat to family peace, joy and happiness. The Bible says:

Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes (Songs of Solomon 2:15). Foxes are usually identified with destruction in the Scripture. They are little things that some may consider too insignificant to merit any attention. But, amazingly, those seemingly insignificant things can destroy unity in the families, if not properly handled. All through this month, I shall examine some of them and how they can be successfully handled.

Challenges of Family Life

UNFORGIVENESS

This is the seed that breeds bitterness. The Bible says: Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled; (Hebrews 12:15). The term “springing up” connotes a thing that starts small and then suddenly explodes. Bitterness starts from very little things. Perhaps, your spouse or a family member has done something to hurt you and you refuse to forgive him or her, every remembrance of the incident brings pain to you. Watch it! That’s a root of bitterness springing up gradually. If it is not handled immediately, it will ultimately trouble the peace of your home.

Unforgiveness has many negative effects ranging from lost of peace and rest, to falling short of God’s grace. Not only does it trouble individuals, it goes beyond that to defile the person (Acts 8:23). Unforgiveness and bitterness torments. It opens the door to certain devourers such as poverty, barrenness, sickness, etc., in the family. Now that we know the effects of unforgiveness and bitterness, wisdom demands that we properly handle them in order to experience family success.

How Then, Can You Overcome Unforgiveness?

Someone may ask what must I do to overcome unforgiveness and bitterness? The answer is simple, forgive! The Bible says: Let all bitterness…be put away from you, with all malice (Ephesians 4:31). Forgive whosoever has offended you. Don’t wait for the person to come and apologise to you, because he may not. Learn the secret of instant forgiveness. That is, forgive as soon as you are offended, whether the offender asks for it or not. This is one of the secrets of success in family life. The Word of God has this to say about strife and envy: For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work (James 3:16). Many have lost their families to bitterness; you don’t have to join them. This principle of instant forgiveness has helped me a great deal. My husband and I practice it and it pays off for us. It pays to forgive!

Before you can forgive, firstly, you need to be forgiven by God by accepting Jesus as Lord and personal Saviour. If you desire His forgiveness, say this prayer in faith: Dear Lord Jesus Christ, I come to You today. I am a sinner. Forgive me my sins and cleanse me with Your Blood. I accept You as my Lord and Saviour. Make me a child of God today. Thank You for delivering me from sin and satan to serve the living God and thank You for accepting me into Your Kingdom.

Congratulations! If you prayed this simple prayer of faith with me, you are now born again and a child of God. He loves you and will never leave you. Read your Bible daily, obey God’s Word and seek Christian fellowship (John 14:21).

With this, you are guaranteed all-round rest and peace in Jesus’ Name! Call or write to share your testimonies with me through [email protected], 07026385437 OR 08141320204.

For more insight, these books authored by me are available at the Dominion Bookstores in all Living Faith Churches and other leading Christian bookstores: Marriage Covenant, Making Marriage Work, Building A Successful Home and Success in Marriage (Co-Authored).

Pastor Faith Oyedepo is the wife of Bishop David Oyedepo, the founder of the Living Faith Church Worldwide a.k.a. Winners’ Chapel, and Senior Pastor of Faith Tabernacle, Canaanland, Ota, Nigeria.

Topic: Change Your Mentality [TREM’s Daily Thursday January 11th, 2018]

“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind…” (Romans 12:2a KJV)

The Christian life, though full of trials, is nevertheless progressive. It is from grace to grace and from glory to glory. You must, therefore, walk with the mentality that God did not call you to shame or embarrassment. He called you to a life of glory and virtue.

Beloved, like I would always say, refuse to look at what is happening around you. Rather, fix your heart on God’s word. His word to you is that He will do a brand-new thing. (Isaiah 43:19). Begin to walk, talk, act and think like one who has taken delivery of something new. When God speaks of something new in your life, He is not talking about refurbishment. No! He means something novel, original, fresh, unique, brand new and occurring for the first time. That means you should not expect negative things to happen to you like it used to in the time past. Remember that as a man thinks in his heart so is he. Wake up in the morning and expect only good to happen to you.

One way to change your mentality is to create your day with your mouth. Don’t allow the devil create your day. Speak what you want to see and it will come to pass. Refuse whatever tag or label of failure the world wants to put on you. They may have tagged you a failure in time past, refuse it because God says only new things are permitted to happen in your life. Expect your health to be renewed! Expect new opportunities and new vistas in business. Trust God for fresh ideas and creativity that will catapult you to a new dimension in life. Refuse to settle for the mundane. Refuse to cancel out yourself, even in the face of the manipulations of the adversary.

I decree that no one will exchange your miracle. The wealth of hidden places will be revealed to you and you will not be stranded. Good news concerning you will be noised abroad. I bless you.

Further Reading: Isaiah 43:18-21

Daily Bible Reading: Morning- Gen 27, 28 / Evening- Matt: 9:18-34

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: Fire From The Philippines [Our Daily Manna ODM Thursday, January 11th, 2018]

Basic scripture : Matthew 27:1-10

We got the testimony below from our Facebook page and I am led to publish it. It is great to know that this vision and this little book has gone so far and wide, worldwide, despite the wicked attacks of enemies. Oh Thank you Jesus!

I was a victim of human trafficking when I was in Abu Dhabi. At that time, we were locked up somewhere. I met a Nigerian who had one bag of our daily manna booklets and she was giving them out! I was blessed by all the messages when I was reading my copy. A lot had happened then. I was sold to Lebanon!

Their purpose for us was slavery. But when I got that book, I prayed the” prayers for Difficulty in a foreign land” among 402 prayers in the book and I went home free! My freedom from slavery is a testimony! God is so good (from lazy Lao; the Philippines). What a mighty God we serve!

No matter the heat of the battle you are facing now as you use today’s devotional, note that, No power can extend your battle! Whatever has a beginning has end! You must testify! As you remain faithful to the prayers in this vision and you follow the prophetic instructions, BATTLE EXTENDERS WILL SCATTER! Juds sold Jesus and was happy! After a while, he lost his peace and hanged himself! Any power that says that your decorations and testimony will not appear, shall hang themselves at last this year! Amen!

I see a MULTITUDE DANCING WITH YOU this year! Amen. This sister from Philippines was helped by ODM given to her! I am led to ask to give out 5 extra copies of this ODM booklet and there shall be a SPECIAL PROPHETIC GRACE released over your life, family and destiny within the next 5 days(5 stands for GRACE)

TODAY IS DAY 6 of this 21 day fasting programme. Turn to page 35 of the “WAR AGAINST HUMAN – 13” booklet for today’s special prayers.

Prayer Points: Take your best worship song to God.

1. Thank God for today’s word and pray as you are led.

2. I decree, men and women shall dance with me this year in Jesus name.

3. Holy Ghost arise against every power that says I shall not testify in Jesus name.

4. Pray for the testifier in today’s devotional.

5. Pray about today seriously and any other issues affecting your peace.

By Bishop (Dr) Chris E. Kwakpovwe (Cek)
Publisher/Writer Of ODM And

Rev (Mrs) Flora E. Kwakpovwe (Fek)
Co-Publisher/Writer Of ODM.

Topic: What’s Inside? [Our Daily Bread 11th Thursday January, 2018]

Read: 2 Corinthians 4:7–18, Bible in a Year: Genesis 27–28; Matthew 8:18–34

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. – 2 Corinthians 4:7

“Do you want to see what’s inside?” my friend asked. I had just complimented her on the old-fashioned rag doll her daughter held in her small arms. Instantly curious, I replied that yes, I very much wanted to see what was inside. She turned the doll face down and pulled open a discreet zipper sewn into its back. From within the cloth body, Emily gently removed a treasure: the rag doll she’d held and loved throughout the years of her own childhood more than two decades prior. The “outer” doll was merely a shell without this inner core to give it strength and form.

Paul describes the truth of Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection as a treasure, carried about in the frail humanity of God’s people. That treasure enables those who trust in Him to bear up under unthinkable adversity and continue in their service. When they do, His light—His life—shines brightly through the “cracks” of their humanness. Paul encourages us all not to “lose heart” (2 Corinthians 4:16) because God strengthens us to do His work.

Like the “inner” doll, the gospel-treasure within us lends both purpose and fortitude to our lives. When God’s strength shines through us, it invites others to ask, “What’s inside?” We can then unzip our hearts and reveal the life-giving promise of salvation in Christ.

Prayer: Thank You, Lord, for saving me. Please shine Your light brightly through my broken life so others will be invited to know You too.

The gospel of truth shines through the brokenness of God’s people.

Insight:

Second Corinthians 4 describes how God’s love mends broken people. We see evidence of this life-change in the story of Zacchaeus, a man who made large profits by overtaxing his people. When Jesus called him out of his sin, Zacchaeus instantly vowed: “If I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount” (Luke 19:1–10). His actions demonstrated his changed life.

How do your actions demonstrate God’s work in your life? Alyson Kieda

This message was written By Kirsten Holmberg [Our Daily Bread Ministries.]

Topic: Biblical Examples Of Men Of Vision [Seeds of Destiny Thursday January 11th, 2018]

Scripture: And the Lord said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. Genesis 13:14-15.

Thought For The Day: To be dreamless is to be doomed.

From our previous studies, we saw the importance of vision in life. We saw that vision is what takes a person to where he is meant to be in life.

Today, we shall look at men of vision and how they ended.

There were men in the Bible and in our contemporary world who had vision and their vision took them to greater heights in life. A few examples of these men would make us pursue our vision for living:

1. Abraham

God told Abraham that He would give the land He saw to his descendants. God fulfilled His promise and gave the land of Canaan to the children of Israel, the descendants of Abraham because he (Abraham) saw it.

2. Joseph

In Genesis Chapter 37, Joseph saw himself as the leader of his brothers. Though it took him thirteen years to actualise that vision, it eventually came to pass when he became a leader in Egypt. The dreams of today are the realities of tomorrow. To be dreamless is to be doomed.

3. David

He had a vision of bringing down Goliath and the vision came to pass (1 Samuel 17: 49-50)

4. Moses

Moses had a vision of delivering his people from the bondage of Egypt. Even though he failed at his first attempt, the vision eventually came to pass when God stepped in (Exodus 12:40).

Beloved, endeavour to follow the practical steps of these great men of God by conceiving a vision for your life.

Remember This: To be dreamless is to be doomed.

Assignments:

1. Take a closer study of the lives of Abraham, Joseph, David and Moses.

2. Practice what you learn from their lives.

Prayer: O Lord, give me the grace to walk with You like the Patriarchs. Do with me Lord, what You created me for, in Jesus’ Name.

FOR FURTHER UNDERSTANDING, GET THIS MESSAGE: THE LIFE OF VISION.

Amazing Fact: We have the same amount of hairs on our body as a chimpanzee. Most are useless and so fine that they are invisible.

Today In History: 11/01/1964 – U.S. Surgeon General Luther Terry released a report that said that smoking cigarettes was a definite health hazard.

Quote: Vision is the focal object of a man’s pursuit. Culled from 10 PRINCIPAL SECRETS OF PRINCIPAL PEOPLE by Dr Paul Enenche.

Daily Reading: Genesis 24:52 to 26:16, Matthew 8:18 to 34, Psalm 10:1 to 15, Proverbs 3:7 to 8.

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.

Topic: Don’t Look at the Storm [Kenneth and Gloria Copeland, Thursday January 11th, 2018]

But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? – Matthew 14:30-31

If there’s any way the devil can get your eyes away from the Word, he’ll do it. He’ll cause trouble. He’ll make the circumstances around you pitch and roll like a rowboat in a hurricane. He’ll do anything he can to get you to concentrate on the realm of the physical senses and the situation around you instead of on the promise of God—because he knows that if he doesn’t, you’ll take that promise and beat his brains out with it.

That’s what he did to Peter. When Peter first jumped out of the boat that day in response to Jesus’ word, what happened? He walked right across that water without a problem. His whole being was fastened on that word Jesus had spoken to him, “Come!”

But when he took his eyes off that word, he started looking at the storm. He started looking at the impossible thing he was doing. After all, he was a fisherman. All his training and experience told him when the waves were that high, you were going under. He started to focus on what he knew in the natural instead of what Jesus said. When he did that, his faith slipped out of gear and he started to sink.

Don’t let that happen to you. Once you get a revelation from the Word of God, hang on to it. Don’t focus on anything else.

The devil will do everything he can to get you to turn loose of it. He’ll stir up things around you. He’ll try to get you into fear. He’ll push every button he can from the past to get you back into your old way of thinking.

But don’t let go. Keep your eyes on the Word of God until it’s more real inside you than anything else. If you do, you’ll be able to walk your way across the water just fine.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 14:22-33

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: Joseph Was A Man Of Faith [Andrew Wommack’s Daily Thursday January 11th, 2018]

Matthew 1:24, “Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife.”

Text: Matthew 1:18-24

Much attention is given to Mary and her piety, but Joseph was quite a man of faith, too.

Verse 18 says that Mary was “found” with child, implying that the pregnancy was observed by Joseph, not explained to him by Mary. And this was after Mary had been away visiting Elisabeth for three months! (Lk. 1:56) Certainly Joseph was tempted with the same thoughts that you or I would have been. How could she expect him to believe that this was a virgin birth?

As special as Mary was, she had an equally special young man for a fiance.

How many men would have believed such an incredible story even if an angel had told them in a dream? It took more faith on Joseph’s part than it did on Mary’s.

This is the way it always is. Those who hear of the vision or call of God second hand have to exhibit an even greater faith than the person who received the word from the Lord directly.

The scriptures don’t mention whether or not Mary ever attempted to convince Joseph of the truth. What would have been the use? Only God could make someone believe a story like this. It is to Mary’s credit that she trusted God and to Joseph’s credit that he believed God. Today, do as the Lord bids you and trust God to take care of the rest.

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).