Topic: God Is Hungry For A Relationship [Sunday July 9, 2017]

“for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” Revelation 4:11

In Genesis chapter one, God created the sun and the moon. He separated the night from the day. He made the waters, the firmament, the oceans and the seas. He puts everything in place. The mineral kingdom, the vegetation kingdom and the animal kingdom. And in verse 26 God says, “… Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.” In chapter 2:18, “….the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him.”

Those two scriptures tell us how God views relationship. First, he established a relationship between himself and man. He said let us make man in our image. In other words, let me make somebody I can relate or identify with. That means that God enjoys relationships. There is something that we give to God through our relationship.  We bring pleasure to God such that when he looks at us he shakes his head and say this is the work of my hands. This belongs to me. He enjoys it. That is why whatever you do in life, always think in terms of how it will affect your relationship with God. How will he look at it? Will it add joy to him?

He established right away that he was hungry for relationship. He created all the fishes and animals and did not say let us create them in our image. But he said let us create man in our image so they can be able to have emotions and be able to identify with me. Having created man in his image he turned around and said I am not yet done with man. It is not good for man to be alone. He went ahead and established another level of relationship through marriage because relationships are in levels.

Further Reading: Genesis 1:26-30, 2:18-24

Daily Bible Reading: Morning- Job 38-40; Evening- Acts 16:1-21

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: Losing Ground [Sunday July 9, 2017]

Text: 2 Kings 16:1-9

Key Verse: “At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drave the Jews from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day” (2 Kings 16:6).

Every society has its crop of deviants, even where the best of rules and regulations are installed. Ahaz, the 11th king of Judah proved himself one of the worst kings of the land. Despite having many good examples, both immediately in his father Jotham and historically in his ancestor David, he rejected these godly examples and walked in his own way.

He multiplied sins and brought Judah into full-fledged idolatry. He walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, who worshiped before the calves made by Jeroboam. As if that was not enough, he made his sons to pass through the fire in open worship of Molech, contrary to God’s command. Ahaz, did not only reject the godly heritage of David, also, he embraced the ungodly ways of the kings of the northern kingdom of Israel. His impunity and lack of reverence for God led to monumental losses for Judah both geographically and politically.

They also became economically impoverished. The silver and the gold of the temple as well as those of the national treasury were given to the king of Assyria. Judah also came under the indirect rule of the king of Assyria. Eventually, Ahaz lost the promise of long life and peace. Ahaz lived a life that totally displeased the Lord and courted the anger and wrath of God. Biological attachment to a godly family or affiliation to a holy assembly without a personal encounter with the God of salvation cannot avail.

Those who are called by the name of the Lord, yet are full of their own ways and disregard the word of God or the gentle warnings of the Spirit will suffer loss, both here and in eternity, if they refuse to consider their ways and repent. Just like Ahaz and Judah, so is the lot of those who remain in hypocrisy, lust, extortion, pretence, lies, deception, greed etc. Examine yourself thoroughly today and repent, so that iniquity will not be your ruin.

Thought for the day: Sin breeds slavery and eternal damnation.

Bible Reading in one Year: Genesis 26-28

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: Keep the Weeds Out [Sunday July 9, 2017]

So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground. – Mark 4:26

Jesus compared the kingdom of God with the planting of seed and reaping the harvest. It’s a simple concept. One all of us understand. Why, then, aren’t all of us producing bumper crops every season? Because we’re sitting around waiting for God to do all the work.

He doesn’t operate that way. He’ll work with you, but He won’t do it all. There are some essential things you must do by faith if you want to have a crop to reap at harvest time.

First, you must sow the seed of the Word in faith, expecting it to grow. You must find precious promises from God in His Word, plant them in your heart and in your life.

Next, you must water the seed. Water it every day with praise. Water it with the spiritual water of the Word. That Word contains life and those seed promises can’t grow without it.

And finally, you have to keep the weeds out! When the weeds of unforgiveness, doubt, fear, discouragement (and all the other junk the devil tries to sow into your crop) try to enter in, get rid of them. They’ll choke the Word.

That’s going to take some diligence on your part. No one else will do it for you. You’re going to have to weed your own crop. So get tough about it. When a little weed pops up, kill it! Don’t hang on to it for even a moment. Pull it up by its roots. Spray it with the Word. Don’t be tempted to keep a wildflower when you can have the best—God’s best.

Don’t sit around waiting for God to produce your harvest. Start planting. Start watching over your land (your heart and your mind) to keep it moist, watered with the Word and free from weeds.

Commit to do your part and trust God to do His. You will have a bumper crop this season!

Scripture Reading: Ephesians 4:22-32

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: Believing Is Seeing- The Faith Principle [Sunday July 9, 2017]

Scripture: And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away. Mark 11:20-21

Thought For The Day: The mountain-moving faith is faith that does not see before it believes.

From our anchor scripture we see how Peter drew the attention of Jesus Christ the next day to the withering of the tree that Jesus cursed the previous day (Mark 11:21). This implies that Jesus was not looking towards the fig tree in order to curse it again just in case it refused to die; someone had to remind Him. As far as Jesus was concerned, the death of the fig tree was history.

That was mountain-moving faith in action. It is very crucial to note that the mountain-moving faith is faith that does not see before it believes.

The world says, ‘Seeing is believing’ but the mountain-moving faith says ‘believing is seeing.’

On the journey of faith, we do not see results before we believe; we believe to see the expected results. Psalm 27:13 says: I had fainted unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord… So, we believe to see.

Mountain-moving faith does not wait to confirm if what was prayed for or decreed about will happen or not; it is faith that is not surprised at answers. People with mountain-moving faith are rather surprised when what they believed did not happen. Their surprise is not that it happened; their surprise would be if it did not happen.
I declare to you, extra ordinary things shall become ordinary in your life, in Jesus’ Name!

Remember this: The mountain-moving faith is faith that does not see before it believes.

Assignment (s):

1. Grow your faith to believe that anything is possible, and everything will become possible.

2. Feed on the Word of God consistently for the growth of faith (Romans 8:17).

3. Pray in the Spirit consistently for the growth of faith (Jude vs 20)

FOR FURTHER UNDERSTANDING, GET THIS MESSAGE: Mountain Moving Faith.

Prayer: Father, I receive the grace to grow my faith. Cause every mountain around me to give way, LORD in Jesus’ Name.

Daily Reading: 1 Chronicles 7:1 to 8:40, Acts 27:1 to 20, Psalm7:1 to 17, Proverbs 18:22

Quote: Anyone who does not take the Bible serious can never operate with faith…. Culled from 15 KINGDOM STRATEGIES FOR SURVIVAL by Dr Paul Enenche.

Amazing Fact: A shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes.

Today In History: 09/07/1815 – Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord became the first Prime Minister of France.

PROPHETIC PARENTAL BLESSING: I prophesy that from this day forward, your life shall be a blessing to yourself, to your family, to your friends, to your organisation, to your Nation and to God’s Kingdom.

Dunamis International Gospel Centre (DIGC), is a powerfully anointed church, headquartered at Abuja, Nigeria, with Dr Paul and Dr 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: A Joyful Heart [Sunday July 9, 2017]

Read: 2 Chronicles 7:1–10, Bible in a Year: Job 38–40; Acts 16:1–21

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. – Psalm 100:1

My granddaughter’s favorite tune is one of John Philip Sousa’s marches. Sousa, known as “The March King,” was a US composer in the late nineteenth century. Moriah isn’t in a marching band; she’s only twenty months old. She just loves the tune and can even hum a few notes. She associates it with joyful times. When our family gets together, we often hum this song along with claps and other boisterous noises, and the grandchildren dance or parade in circles to the beat. It always ends in dizzy children and lots of laughter.

Our joyful noise reminds me of the psalm that implores us to “worship the Lord with gladness” (Ps. 100:2). When King Solomon dedicated the temple, the Israelites celebrated with praises (2 Chron. 7:5–6). Psalm 100 may have been one of the songs they sang. The psalm declares: “Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. . . . Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name” (vv. 1-2, 4). Why? “For the Lord is good and his love endures forever”! (v. 5).

Praise is the overflow of a joyful heart.

Our good God loves us! In grateful response, let’s “shout for joy to the Lord”! (Ps. 100:1).

Prayer: Dear Lord, give us thankful hearts to praise You, because You are good and all that You do is good. Your love endures forever!

Praise is the overflow of a joyful heart.

This message was written By Alyson Kieda [Our Daily Bread Ministries.]

A Promise For You From Bible Promises:

Topic: Doing Everything Through Christ  [08/07/2017]
               
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Philippians 4:13. Read: Jn 15:5

In life, there is no height too high that you cannot reach. There is no mountain too tall that you cannot climb and there is no battle too strong or tough that you cannot conquer. Your victory over life’s circumstances depends on your tenacity. If you give up too soon over everything, you will never get anything tangible done in life. There are lots of potential deposited in your life to make you successful in life. Many that have made headway in life today don’t have too heads, they were simply tenacious and passionate about what they were doing. Do not write yourself off over a failed attempt, you have failed many times doesn’t make you a failure, you only become one when you refuse to try again. Prophet Micah 7:8 says, Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me. My friend, rise and dust yourself off those failure mentality and move on, do it right and at the right time.

God is with you if you will be with Him on that endeavour. How can you be with God? By allowing His will to be done in your life and His will cannot be done in your life if you have not surrendered that life to Him. Remember, Paul said in Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Surrender your life to Him now to empower you to reach that height you aim in life. Only in His will can you realize and fulfill yours.

#BiblePromisesPrayer

* Father, as your child, empower again to realize and to fulfill my destiny in Jesus Mighty Name

Topic: The Healing Touch [Sunday 9, July 2017]

Memorise: And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. – Matthew 8:3

Read: Matthew 8:1-3 (KJV)

1 When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him.

2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.

3 And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

Bible in One Year: 1 Samuel 22-23, Ezekiel 4, Hymn: Sing hymn 5

MESSAGE:

There are many methods the God of all flesh uses in healing people. A leper once came to Jesus saying, “Lord, I know You can heal me, but I don’t know if it is Your will.” Jesus touched him and said, “It is My will to heal you; be clean”, and immediately, he received his healing. Through this encounter, we understand that the God of all flesh can heal you by His touch. Some people find it easy to believe that God can touch them spiritually, but they cannot believe that He can touch them physically. Yes, God still touches people physically today. Many year ago, we went to church on a Sunday morning, and after the service, we returned home to rest before going back to church for workers’ meeting in the afternoon. In those days, if you were late for the workers’ meeting, you would be in serious trouble with my father-in-the-Lord. On this particular day, after the morning service, we came back home to rest. We decided that nobody would lie down lest we slept. Afterwards, I went to pray in my room and fell asleep in the process. Then all of a sudden, I felt a strong hand pressing my leg down and I awoke. I glanced at my wristwatch and screamed because we were almost running late! I thought my wife woke me up, so I went to find her to thank her. However, when I got downstairs, expecting to meet her ready and waiting, I met her and the children fast asleep! I then realised I had received a divine touch. Today, the Lord will touch you physically and deliver your healing to you in Jesus’ Name.

On the other hand, the God of all flesh can just speak a word, and you will receive your healing. Hence, Psalm 107:20 says,

“He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.”

When the Lord Jesus Christ was going to heal Bartimaeus, He did not touch him but only spoke a word, and the blind man received his sight (Mark 10:52). He still does this today. During a Holy Ghost Service we had, the Lord announced that a woman with cervical cancer was in the congregation, and that the cancer was gone, adding that she should go and confirm with her doctor. Indeed, such a woman was there, and she received the word. She went to her doctor for a check-up, and she discovered that the cancer was indeed gone. Are you sick? Receive your healing now in Jesus’ Name.

Action Point: Thank God for the success of pass Holy Ghost Conventions. Pray that this year’s Convention will be the greatest ever experienced.

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: You Must Plan [Saturday July 8, 2017]

It is not just enough to set goals, you must have a plan to achieve it phase by phase. Success in life begins with planning. Progress and continuity also thrive on it. There is no accidental success in life; the expanse of your plan determines the height of your achievements. That means where there s no plan, there is no future. The future is reserved only for planners. If you are not a planner, you are not likely to make the most of your future. That is why planning makes the future better. You can only be as successful as your plan, because it takes planning to execute ideas and to systematically work out your projections. You must have a programme of duly scheduled activities that will lead to the achievement of your goals, otherwise frustration sets in. With good planning you can programme your way out of poverty into prosperity and out of calamity into peace.

Often, you hear people pray for God’s guidance in their endeavours. That is good because it is God’s duty to direct our ways, but we must understand that He often uses our devises or plans to direct us. The Holy Bible says, “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps” (Prov. 16:9). That means if you have no plans, you will suffer lack of direction. Most often, the answer you are looking up to God for or running around men for, is already deposited within you, it is in the process of devising that you draw it out. You don’t wait for your future, rather you embrace and beckon it by devising a way to get there.

– Meditate on these: Luke 14:28-29

Topic: The Heart of an Eagle [Saturday July 8, 2017]

That is why I would remind you to stir up (rekindle the embers of, fan the flame of, and keep burning) the [gracious] gift of God, [the inner fire] that is in you. — 2 Timothy 1:6

Do you ever feel like an eagle in a chicken yard? You know in your heart that there is much more within you than you are experiencing and expressing in your life right now. You feel certain God has a great purpose for your life—and you cannot escape or ignore the inner urge to “go for it.”

I encourage you today to fan the flame inside you. Fan it until it burns brightly. Never give up on the greatness for which you were created, and never try to hide your uniqueness. Instead, be thankful for it, and be thankful that God has something special in store. Realize your hunger for adventure is God-given; wanting to try something new is a wonderful desire; and embracing life and aiming high is what you were made for. You are an eagle!

Prayer of Thanks: Father, thank You for the dreams and desires You have placed in my heart. Thank You that You have a destiny for me. Today, I will dare to dream of all the wonderful things You have in Your plan for my life.

You are watching RCCG July 2017 Holy Ghost Service LIVE from the Redemption Camp, K/M 46-48, Lagos/Ibadan Expressway. Ministering: Pastor E.A. Adeboye