Topic: Meet God 4 [Sunday, 6th August 2017]

For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.  Acts 17:23

While we must take the study of God’s Word seriously for us to know the Lord, understanding the Word can’t be done with our natural mind. This is where the Holy Spirit comes in. We would well agree that trying to understand the word by our own understanding can get very frustrating and unproductive. It is because “all scripture is given by inspiration of God…” and this inspiration is the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 2:11 states expressly that “for what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.”

Jesus Christ said of the Holy Spirit, in John 16:13, “howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.”

Also in John 14:26, Jesus said “but the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”

But we can’t get to enjoy these amazing things that the Holy Spirit does in the life of the believer if we shun the communion of the Spirit. This is actually the whole essence of Christianity, because it is the Spirit that gives life and meaning to all our Christian experience.

Some of us may start wondering how we can access the Holy Spirit so we can experience the wonderful things He brings to us. Well, He is not far off. As long as you are a believer, He abides in you. 1 Corinthians 2:12 says: “now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” You received Him as part of your salvation experience. 1 John 2:27 says: “but the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.” The Holy Spirit abides in us, and wants to teach us all things. Yield yourself to Him so you can learn of Him, and know the Lord.

Keep winning daily.

Prayer:

Dear Father, thank You for the gift of Your Holy Spirit, Who teaches me all things. Help me yield to Him, so I can learn You. Thank You Father, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

By Esun Tekeme

Topic: Face Life with Boldness and Courage [Sunday August 6, 2017]

Then you will prosper if you are careful to keep and fulfill the statutes and ordinances with which the Lord charged Moses concerning Israel. Be strong and of good courage. Dread not and fear not; be not dismayed. – 1 Chronicles 22:13

Recently a group of pastors asked me a question: Besides God Himself, what one thing had helped me get from where I started in ministry to the level of success I currently enjoy? I immediately said, “I refused to give up!” There were thousands of times when I felt like giving up, thought about giving up, and was tempted to give up, but I always pressed on.

Don’t let life defeat you. Face it with boldness and courage, and declare that you will enjoy every aspect of it. You can do that because you have the awesome power of God dwelling in you. God is never frustrated and unhappy. He always has peace and joy, and since He lives in us and we live in Him, surely we can attain the same thing.

When you are in pain, you don’t have to dwell on the pain and let it ruin your day. You can still accomplish what you need to do by God’s grace, and you don’t have to fear and dread that you may feel that same way tomorrow. I have ministered to others many times while I was in pain myself. Whatever we go through, God will always be with us. Choose to believe that Jesus is your Healer and that His healing power is working in your body right now!

When tempted to worry, Dave always says, “I am not impressed.” He believes we should be more impressed by God’s Word than our problems. He says if we don’t get impressed, we won’t get depressed, then oppressed, and ultimately perhaps even possessed by our difficulties.

No matter what you are facing right now, God has a great life planned for you. It includes prosperity and progress in every area of life. It includes great peace, unspeakable joy, and every good thing you can imagine. Refuse to settle for anything less than God’s best for you!

Trust in Him: Trusting God means believing He lives in you, and all that is His is yours. Be strong and courageous and never give up, and you will have everything He wants you to have in life.

Topic: When Faith Works [Sunday August 6, 2017]

Faith works when a matter is worse, faith works at odd times.

Faith works in hard situations.

Faith does not work along but against circumstances.

Faith is at its best when things are not working in the natural.

Faith is most excited when the battle is on.

Faith is able and ready to confront all levels of battle.

The strength of faith is exhibited only in fighting battles of life.

“Show me someone who has done something worthwhile and I ‘ll show you someone who has overcome adversity.”

Topic — John Newton: Adversity Is The Mother Of Prosperity [Sunday 6 August, 2017]

(2 Corinthians 4: 10-18).

“I was born in 1752, died 1807. The only godly influence I can remember was my mother, whom I had for only seven years. When she left my life through death, I was virtually an orphan. My Father remarried and sent me to a strict military school, where the severity of discipline almost broke my back. I could not stand it anymore, so I fled in rebellion at the age of ten. I joined a ship going to Africa. There, I stole rum and was always drunk. I made up my mind to sin to my fill without restraint. Once in the ship as I was drinking, the sailor ( Captain of the ship) beat me and threw me down below within the ship cabinet. I lived only on stale bread for weeks. I lived with a scar on my side, big enough for me to put my fist into. In the midst of all these, to keep the ship afloat, I worked along as a servant of the slaves that were being transported.

There, bruised and confused, bleeding and degraded, I remembered the words of my mother. I cried out to God for His grace and His mercy. God heard me and changed my life. When the ship landed, I married a childhood sweetheart and entered the ministry. Crowds often gathered just to hear my testimony of salvation. I was led of God just before my death to put my story in words/a hymn.

My name is John Newton. The song is: “Amazing Grace How Sweet the Sound.” Goodness! Can you imagine that such a popular / powerful song that has blessed billions of souls was born from adversity and pain? The lesson for a user of today’s devotional is that God is able to bring great good through the difficult seasons of your life. Oh! I remembered being set up, lied against and blackmailed by a syndicate that demanded for money and a house from me, early this year! I was shocked and angry and determined to fight for revenge, but God exonerated me in a mysterious way that is now a great testimony!

But why God allow His people to pass through agony as a route to their glory land? Ah! Hear LOU HOLTZ: “Show me someone who has done something worthwhile and I ‘ll show you someone who has overcome adversity.” Great good will come out of any allowed difficulty around your life/ ministry! Hold on to God. Hold on to hope against hope!

When life goes ZIGZAG, ODM brings daily peace and sanity. Give out copies.

Prayer Points: Take Song 1: Stand up for Jesus……….

1. Lord, turn whatever the enemy meant for bad or good now, in Jesus Christ name. Worship God for His amazing grace.

2. Pray about any problem affecting your peace and declare that it will lead to your good. Receive grace! Receive Peace! now, in Jesus Christ name (Pray it very well).

3. Pray the morning, afternoon and evening devotional prayers.

Get my new books: “Blasting Down Your Walls of Jericho” and “My Womb Must Open by Fire” from any bookshop nationwide.

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

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

Topic: Ye Shall Be The Head — Monday 7, August 2017.

Memorise: And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:  – Colossians 2:10

Read: Deuteronomy 28:1-14 (KJV)

1 And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:

2 And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.

3 Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.

4 Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

5 Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.

6 Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.

7 The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.

8 The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

9 The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways.

10 And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.

11 And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee.

12 The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.

13 And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them:

14 And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.

Bible in One Year: 1 Kings 22; Ezekiel 21:1-17, Hymn: Sing hymn 7: O Jesus, I Have Promised

Open Heavens 7th August 2017 Message:

The head is the most important part of the body; hence, kings and priests were anointed on their heads and Christ is referred to as the Head of the Church (Ephesians 4:15). Also, more often than not, symbols of power, authority and honour are displayed on the head. The body is able to operate efficiently because the head is capable of interpreting data received from the body, and also because the head is able to send out appropriate signals to the various parts of the body. The capacity of the head to intelligently interpret and direct the activities of the whole body makes the existence of the body completely dependent on the head. For this reason, we as the Body of Christ are totally dependent on Him, who is our Head. The Lord has also sent us out as His representatives to be head over every situation around us. Henceforth, you shall be the head and the most important personality within your sphere of influence in Jesus’ Name.

To be the head indeed is not a theoretical concept but a practical reality that must be manifested. A person who is really the head must effectively provide leadership through the coordination of all the abilities at his or her disposal. From a physical point of view, the eyes are there to provide vision, the ears to collect information through sound, the nose for smelling, the tongue for taste and the mouth for verbal communication. The brain has the responsibility of processing the various data gathered by these different parts of the head, either for immediate use or for future application, as the case may be. If any of these organs that form part of the head is impaired, the head will not be able to effectively perform its leadership role in the body. For you to be head indeed, every ability that you need in order to provide leadership, be it spiritual, physical or resource-wise, must not be impaired. I therefore pray that God will protect everything about you, so that you will provide excellent leadership, in the Name of Jesus. Among other things, three factors are necessary for a head to perform effectively: eyes that see, ears that hear and a month that speaks. Physical eyes are required to view things in general, while spiritual eyes are necessary for divine revelation to see beyond the physical realm. Ears that function properly listen to people and also hear from God. Picking up divine communication is absolutely necessary for anyone who will be the head. Also, a functional mouth is necessary for communicating with fellow men and for making declarations in the Name of Jesus. I pray for you that you will receive clear vision, your ears will hear the sound from heaven, your mouth will make irreversible decrees, and you shall be an effective head in the mighty Name of Jesus.

Prayer Point: Father, please touch my head and bless me with everything I need to be a successful leader in Jesus’ Name.

Open Heavens 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.

iOpenHeavens is the electronic version of the Hard Copy. The Open Heavens devotional application is available across all mobile platforms and operating systems: iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Mobile and PC.

Topic: Child-Like Faith For The Kingdom [Sunday August 6, 2017]

Text: Mark 10:13-16

Key Verse: “Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein” (Mark 10:15).

Children have strong faith in their parents, especially their mothers, for all their needed care and provision, such as feeding, protection, shelter, clothing, payment of school fees among others. Their faith does not fail. This is the kind of faith that Jesus expects from His children, if they are to make Heaven. We must receive the Kingdom of God as little children; that is, we must stand attached to Christ and His grace as little children do to their parents, nurses and teachers. We must be inquisitive as children, learn as children, believe and obey the words of the Lord. A learner must believe.

The mind of a child is like a white paper. John Locke, great philosopher called it tabula rasa—a mere blank sheet; you may write upon it what you will. Our minds must be like that to the pen of the Spirit of God for us to enter into heaven. Children are under their teachers to whom they have so much respect; so must we be to the Lord. We must receive the kingdom of God as the child Samuel did. Little children depend on their parents’ wisdom and care and readily abandon themselves in the arms of their parents. We should similarly dwell under the everlasting arms of the Lord. We are expected to serve the Lord with joy and enthusiasm. They also take whatever is provided for them.

Likewise, we must receive the kingdom of God, in humble resignation to Jesus Christ and easy dependence on Him for strength and righteousness. Children fellowship is usually devoid of bitterness, hatred, wrath, malice, envy and strife. Differences are settled instantly and every disagreement is totally forgotten, unlike adults who have a capacity to harbor hatred, malice and the likes for long periods. God demands childlike humility, obedience and faith from us, if we are to follow Him profitably to the end.

Thought for the day: A heart not yielded has no place in God’s Kingdom.

Bible Reading in one Year: Jeremiah 5-6

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.

Topic: Let Your Life Begin Again [Sunday August 6, 2017]

Behold, now is the day of salvation. – 2 Corinthians 6:2

Did you know that Jesus has unlocked the prison doors of guilt that have kept you captive? It doesn’t matter who you are or what you’ve been. I don’t care if you’ve been a prostitute, a murderer, a thief, a drug dealer or a churchgoer who’s never made Jesus Christ Lord of your life. The Bible says that today is the day of salvation.

A new life is only a prayer away.

Gloria and I discovered that for ourselves more than 35 years ago. Actually, it was Gloria who took the first step. She found out that the Bible says not even a sparrow falls without God’s knowledge. Well, she thought, if God knows and cares when the sparrows fall, He must know what terrible shape my life is in right now. And if He cares, maybe He can do something with it.

Gloria didn’t know anything about the Bible. She didn’t even know for sure that God would let her start over. But when she told Him she wanted Him to take over her life, something supernatural happened on the inside of her. She was born again.

“But what about my past?” you may say. “I feel so guilty about it!”

When you’ve been born again and made a new creature in Christ—that past doesn’t belong to you anymore. And it would be ridiculous to walk around feeling guilty about someone else’s past, wouldn’t it?

What would you think if I took a little baby on my lap, a pretty little thing just a few months old, and said, “Oh, isn’t she precious? But just think about her past.”

You’d think I was crazy! “What past?” you’d say. “She doesn’t have any past!”

Well, it’s the same way with you once you’ve been born again. You don’t have any past. Your life begins again the day you make Jesus Lord of your life. Then, when Satan comes around trying to remind you of what a worm you were before, just tell him he’s knocking on the wrong door.

You’ve been kicked around long enough. There’s no need to wait any longer. The prison door is open. Walk through to Jesus and let your life begin again today.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 10:29-33:

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: The Measure of Faith – Sunday August 6, 2017.

Luke 17:5 “And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith.”

LUKE 17:1-10

There are many scriptures that speak of varying degrees of faith. However, the scriptures also speak of Jesus increasing in wisdom (Lk. 2:52) that certainly refers to His physical intellect drawing more and more on the perfect wisdom of God that was already in Him at birth. It is in this way that we also increase in faith.

At salvation, the believer is given the supernatural faith of God. We had to use the very faith of God (not human faith) to believe the gospel (Eph. 2:8).

That faith came to us through hearing the Word of God (Rom. 10:17), and once we are born again, it becomes an abiding fruit of the Spirit within us.

Every believer is given the same measure of faith at salvation but not all believers use what God has given them. Therefore, it is correct to speak of growing in faith and having great faith or little faith, but it is important to understand that this is speaking of how much faith we use or manifest – not how much faith we were given. All believers were given “the” same measure of faith.

Jesus’ example of the grain of mustard seed underscores the truth that our faith is sufficient if we will just use it without the hindrance of unbelief.

He then continues on into the parable of the servant serving his master to illustrate that our faith is not the problem but rather our use of it. We are using it to serve ourselves instead of our master who is God.

Living by faith is not something special that only the “super-saints” are supposed to do. The Lord expects all of His children to live a supernatural life of faith. He gave you everything you need to do this, just let Him live through you.

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: Love One Another — Sunday August 6, 2017

Set thy house in order . . .  — 2 Kings 20:1

Man condemns himself by his refusal of God’s way of salvation. In love and mercy, God is offering to men and women a way of escape, a way of salvation, a hope and anticipation of better things. Man in his blindness, stupidity, stubbornness, egotism, and love of sinful pleasure, refuses God’s simple method of escaping the pangs of eternal banishment. Suppose you were sick and called a doctor who came and gave you a prescription. But after thinking it over you decided to ignore his advice and to refuse the medicine. When he returned a few days later, he might have found your condition much worse. Could you blame the doctor? Could you hold him responsible? He gave you the prescription, he prescribed the remedy. But you refused it!

Just so, God prescribes the remedy for the ills of the human race. That remedy is personal faith in, and commitment to, Jesus Christ. The remedy is to be “born again.” If we deliberately refuse it, then we must suffer the consequence; and we cannot blame God. Is it God’s fault that we refuse the remedy?

Prayer for the day: Lord Jesus, as You sat looking over Jerusalem, You wept. Give me the same compassion for those who have not accepted Your remedy and been born again.

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.