Topic: Divine Visitation I [Tuesday 11, April 2017]

Memorise: And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken. – Genesis 21:1

Read: Genesis 18:1-10 (KJV)

1 And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day;

2 And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground,

3 And said, My Lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant:

4 Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree:

5 And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts; after that ye shall pass on: for therefore are ye come to your servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said.

6 And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.

7 And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetcht a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and he hasted to dress it.

8 And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.

9 And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent.

10 And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.

Bible in One Year: Leviticus 21-22, Jeremiah 11:9-23

MESSAGE:

Our God is a benevolent God; He visits an individual, He does not come empty-handed. If you are privileged to receive a visitation from Him, you can be sure you are in for pleasant surprises. My prayer for you is that God in His infinite mercy will visit you today in Jesus’ Name. When Abraham entertained three strange men in his tent, little did he know that they were messengers of the benevolent God. Take a closer look at all the effort Abraham put in just to entertain visitors he could ordinarily have regarded as casual passers-by. Genesis 18:6-7 says,

“6 And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth. 7 And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetcht a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and he hasted to dress it.”

From this passage, it is obvious that Abraham engaged his entire household in making these visitors comfortable.

There are many lessons you can learn from Abraham’s experience which will make it possible for you to enjoy the blessing of receiving a divine visitation. First, you must be hospitable if you want to experience a divine visitation. Concerning this, the Holy Spirit in Hebrews 13:2 says,

“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”

God visits those who share His attribute of generosity. God is so generous that He gave His only begotten Son as a ransom for our sins. Consequently, He became the Father of millions of people who were once alienated from Him. Secondly, when you are showing generosity or hospitality, you must do it willingly, and not as if you are being constrained to do it. The angelic visitors would not have waited if they had noticed unwillingness in Abraham, his wife or his men in receiving them. It was after the strange visitors had eaten their fill that they delivered the message they brought from God. Angels don’t eat human food, so how come theses ones ate the food Abraham served them (Genesis 18:8)? This can only be explained by the sovereignty of the Almighty God. They were transformed and given a human nature in order to be able to eat, so as to teach us valuable lessons. One of these lessons is that when God requests for your tithe, offerings or your first-fruits, it is because He wants to set you up for a divine visitation in your business or chosen career. Be wise!

Prayer Point: Father, please visit me with your awesome presence today.

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: Never Mind Who Is Against You [Monday April 10, 2017]

…If God be for (you), who can be against (you)? – Romans 8:31

Thinking of who is against you is of no use because it will make no difference to you.

Thinking of him won’t make him change his mind in your favour.  Focus your thought on Who is for you.  Because the more you focus on Him the more the help and support he will give to you.

Focusing on who is for you expresses your confidence in Him to help you.

God is for you, no man can be against you.

Refuse to listen to the noise of opposition rather pay attention to the voice of your Defender.

Topic: Evil Forebodings [Monday April 10, 2017]

All the days of the desponding and afflicted are made evil [by anxious thoughts and forebodings], but he who has a glad heart has a continual feast [regardless of circumstances]. — Proverbs 15:15

Shortly after I began to seriously study the Bible, I felt an oppressive atmosphere around me. Everything seemed gloomy—as if something bad was going to happen. It wasn’t anything I could explain, just a vague, dreaded sense of something evil or wrong about to happen.

“Oh, God,” I prayed. “What’s going on? What is this feeling?”

I had hardly uttered the question when God spoke to me. “Evil forebodings.”

I had to meditate on that for several minutes. I had never heard the phrase before. God had spoken to me, and I stayed quiet before Him so I could hear the answers.

I realized, first of all, that my anxieties weren’t real—that is, they were not based on true circumstances or situations. I was having problems—as most of us do—but they were not as critical as the devil was making it appear. My acceptance of his lies, even though they were vague, was opening the door for the evil forebodings. I eventually realized that I had lived in the midst of similar gloomy feelings most of my life. I was expecting something bad to happen instead of aggressively expecting something good.

I felt a dread, an unexplained anxiety around me. I couldn’t put my finger on anything specific—only that sense of something evil or terrible.

The Living Bible says, “When a man is gloomy, everything seems to go wrong.” That’s how I felt, as if something—maybe everything—was wrong or was about to go wrong.

As previously stated, I realized that for most of my life, I had been miserable because of evil thoughts and anxious forebodings.

As I continued to meditate on evil forebodings, God broke through and gave me a clear revelation. I was miserable because my thoughts were miserable—my thoughts were poisoning my outlook. My thoughts robbed me of the ability to enjoy my life. I should have been saying, “Thank You, God, for today. Thank you for Dave and my children and my friends and all Your blessings.” But, instead of being positive, I found myself even dreading to answer the phone when it rang, for fear it might be bad news.

All of this gloom and doom that surrounded me began in my abusive childhood. I endured a great deal of misery, and most of my life was unhappy and filled with disappointments. I began to live in a vague fear and dread of the future. I had not been taught to let go of what was behind. I couldn’t rejoice in what I had now and the good things going on in my life. I focused on the past and what might lie ahead—and what lay ahead was usually gloom and doom and chaos because that was what I was expecting. Satan had built a stronghold in my mind, and I was trapped until I learned I could tear down that negative, evil stronghold by applying God’s Word to my life and circumstances.

I once had a friend whom I’ll call Marlene. She lived in a state of constant chaos. One day she had health problems. The next day Marlene’s son had lost his job, and they were going to have to support him and his family. As soon as that was over, another traumatic situation would erupt. Marlene was a Christian, but she lived in fear of bad news. Marlene would not have known how to live a life that was not filled with chaos. All of her conversation was negative and gloomy. Even her countenance was sad and gloomy.

I realized that I had started to become like Marlene—I was miserable because I had allowed Satan to rob me of the ability to enjoy my life. It took a while before I was able to be positive most of the time, but little by little, my thinking changed, and so did my life. I no longer live in evil forebodings, expecting to hear at any moment of a new problem. Now I ¬purposely expect good things to happen in my life. I realize now that I can choose my thoughts. I don’t have to accept Satan’s lies.

Like everyone else, negative things do happen to me from time to time, but I don’t become negative because of them. I remain positive, and that helps me enjoy my life even in the midst of the storms.

Dear Lord Jesus, through so many days in my life, I have been robbed of my joy and contentment by evil forebodings. As those feelings come to me, please remind me that You are in control. Help me to rest in You and rejoice in Your power in my life. Amen.

Topic: The King is Coming [Monday 10, April 2017]

Memorise: For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: – 1 Thessalonians 4:16

Read: Acts 1:9-11(KJV)

9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;

11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

Bible in One Year: Leviticus 19-20, Jeremiah 10:17-11:8

MESSAGE:

One of the reasons why there is spiritual decadence in the Church today is the loss of focus on the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus knew this would happen and for this reason, He gave us the parable of a king who went on a journey to a far country, leaving behind his servants to work and await his return (Luke 19:12-27). Our King is coming back to be the judge of both the living and the dead. As a preview of the nature of the judgement He will declare against those who rejected His Lordship over their lives, Luke 19:27 says,

“But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.”

Beloved, this will not be your portion in Jesus’ Name. However, you must always remember that our King is coming, and you must also remember what He is coming to do. This attribute will guide you on how to comport yourself in readiness for His return. Do not be deceived by the error of those who claim that Jesus Christ will not come again or that He has already come in the spirit. These are all lies of the devil. The angels who addressed the early disciples after Jesus was taken up to Heaven said this to them in Acts 1:11:

“….This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go into heaven.”

You can therefore rest assured in your heart that Jesus will surely come back. Our Lord Jesus Christ is coming to put the devil where he belongs (Revelations 20:10). All the angels that fell along with the devil, referred to as demons, will also partake of the eternal damnation that will befall him (Matthew 25:41). Our King is also coming to give rewards to every believer according to his or her works. The Lord in Revelation 22:12 says,

“And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.”

Beloved of God, ensure you are one of those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. if your name is already there, work hard to receive commendation and a good reward from the Master. If you labour for the expansion of God’s Kingdom through evangelism and witnessing or through giving and intersession, you can be sure you will not miss your reward when the King returns.

Prayer Point: Father, at the second coming of your Son, Jesus Christ, may I not be put to shame. please give me the grace to be watchful as I live according to your word.

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: True Repentance Required [Monday April 10, 2017]

Text: Exodus 8:1-15

Key Verse: “But when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart, and hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had said” (Exodus: 8:15).

God is too just to overlook sin and take remorse for repentance. In His justice, He warns before bringing judgment. The only response He expects from man is repentance, which is total turning away from sin. In His judgment, He always shows mercy to whosoever is truly penitent. Pharaoh was warned to expect the epidemic of frogs if he refused to let Israel go and serve the Lord.

On Pharaoh’s willful refusal, Moses and Aaron, with outstretched rod, performed the miracle of judgment. It was a plague of frogs that came from the streams, the rivers and the ponds throughout the land of Egypt. Frogs invaded the houses, the ovens, the kneading troughs of both the king and his subjects. Pharaoh’s magicians, in their folly, conjured more frogs with their enchantments. At this stage, Pharaoh could not bear it and, therefore turned to Moses for prayers. He now seemed to have confidence in God. Moses, having a right standing with God, prayed at Pharaoh’s request.

Moses did everything according to the word of God and He in turn, honoured his words. God honours those who honour Him. The frogs all died. You would have thought that Pharaoh had permanently learnt his lesson after going through series of torments. But he remained obstinate. How many people provoke God and invite His judgment by rejecting His word and slighting His servants? How many people resort to physicians of no value who, instead of alleviating their problems, add more burden to their patients? Careless believers soon forget their commitment and promise to serve God.

Let us fear, lest we be found to be hypocrites like Pharaoh, who in times of discipline, walked soberly, prayerfully and carefully, promising to serve God, but failed to follow through after receiving a respite.

Thought for the day: Repentance from sin is the prelude to justification.

Bible Reading in one Year: Deuteronomy 25-27

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: A Journey of Belief [Sunday April 9, 2017]

Read: John 20:24–31, Bible in a Year: 1 Samuel 13–14; Luke 10:1–24

These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. John 20:31

Since its first publication in 1880, Lew Wallace’s novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ has never been out of print. It has been called the most influential Christian book of the nineteenth century, and it continues to draw readers today as it weaves the true story of Jesus with that of a fictional young Jewish nobleman named Judah Ben-Hur.

Amy Lifson, writing in Humanities magazine, said that the writing of the book transformed the life of the author. “As Ben-Hur guided readers through the scenes of the Passion, so did he lead the way for Lew Wallace to believe in Jesus Christ.” Wallace said, “I have seen the Nazarene . . . . I saw him perform works which no mere man could perform.”

The Gospels’ record of the life of Jesus allows us to walk alongside Him, witness His miracles, hear His words, and see His triumphal entry into Jerusalem on what we call Palm Sunday. At the conclusion of John’s gospel, he wrote, “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:30–31).

Just as Lew Wallace’s research, reading of the Bible, and writing led him to believe in Jesus, so God’s Word draws us to a transformation of mind and heart by which we have eternal life in and through Him.

Prayer: Lord, may the record of Your life be written on our minds and hearts so that we may have ever-increasing faith in You.

Many books can inform, but only the Bible can transform.

Insight: The Christian accepts the Bible’s claims that Jesus Christ came to our world, performed miracles, preached about the kingdom of God, was crucified, and rose from the dead. Although Thomas knew Christ personally, he initially doubted that Christ had risen from the dead. After Thomas saw the nail prints in Jesus’s hands and the wound in His side he worshiped Christ and said, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).

What events have been part of your journey of belief? What has God used to transform your heart and mind?

This message was written By  David McCasland [Our Daily Bread Ministries.]

Topic: What Courage Is [Sunday April 9, 2017]

A strong and major content of courage is “Rage.”

Courage is impossible without a rage.

Rage is a reactionary form of anger. It is more of a revolt against an existing but undesirable situation.

It is this rage that formulates courage.

It took a rage in Moses to build the required courage to confront Pharaoh.

Rage makes a man fearless and damns the consequence.

Rage makes him riotous to circumstances. That is what every body needs to break loose from mediocrity and all forms of substandard living.

Now stop watching, waiting, and wishing. Rage!

Topic: Pray Anywhere [Sunday April 9, 2017]

Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are those who dwell in Your house and Your presence; they will be singing Your praises all the day long. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]! — Psalm 84:4

Once in the habit of spending time with God, you will miss these encounters if you start your day without talking and listening to Him. You can spend time with God anywhere, while doing anything—in the grocery store, or while cleaning house, for example. I have had great encounters with God while driving my car.

God is always listening for the sound of your voice calling out to Him. Develop a ready ear for His voice too. Whatever you have to do today, do it with the Lord. Acknowledge Him and talk to Him about everything. You will greatly enjoy His company.

Topic: The Price of Discipleship [Sunday 9, April 2017]

Memorise: Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. – Matthew 11:29

Read: Luke 9:23-26 (KJV)

23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

24 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.

25 For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?

26 For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels.

Bible in One Year: Leviticus 17-18, Jeremiah 10:1-16

MESSAGE:

After giving your life to Christ, you need to go further in your walk with God by becoming a disciple. Many Children of God these days don’t know that discipleship has a price. They don’t even know that Jesus Christ, the Master, has a yoke that they must share with Him. The early disciples, with great difficulty, got to understand this truth on the eve of the crucifixion. While agonising over the inevitable death on the Cross, Jesus Christ asked the disciples to pray and watch along with Him, but instead, they slept. Matthew 26:40-41 says:

“40 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? 41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

We are so blessed to have a Master who knows our frame. He knows that the flesh is weak, even though the spirit is willing. Our willingness to share in His yoke qualifies us to be His disciples. Today, many people don’t want to be taught this aspect of the gospel. They prefer the doctrine of relativism, which teaches that the end justifies the means. Those things that the Lord Jesus Christ abhorred are being courted by some so-called believers today. This should not be so!

In our Bible reading today, Jesus Christ gives a vivid description of the price we must pay to be true disciples of His. In Luke 9:23-24, He said:

“23….If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 24 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.”

This is the price of discipleship. There are many so-called “disciples” today who are far from being disciples. Many cannot even deny their ungodly friends, not to talk of denying themselves. They hold tenaciously to the world contrary to the word in 1 John 2:15-17 which says:

“15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.”

Beloved, are you a true disciple of Jesus Christ or do you want to be one? Ponder on these things and don’t deceive yourself. Always remember what the Holy Spirit said to us in 2 Timothy 2:12:

“If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:”

Prayer Point: Father, the grace to follow You in spirit and in truth, please give me today.

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.

A Promise For You From Bible Promises:

Topic: Be Encouraged [08/04/2017]

Though thy beginning was small, yet thy latter end should greatly increase. Job 8:7. Read: 1 Sam 30:1-6

Every great building started from the foundation and every business empires today started small. It’s better to start small and end great than to start big and never grow from there or even crash. If you have the capacity to start big, it’s good and added advantage, if not, start with what you have and where you are. Rome was not built in a day. Don’t wait for better conditions before you start, instead, start now and better conditions will come. God has blessed you with all you need to start, stop looking for what you don’t have as an excuse for doing nothing.

Though, there is discouragement at every beginning, many will criticise what you are doing. They will say all sort of things against it, they will look out for your mistake. Those you think would encourage you might mastermind your discouragement. They will talk ill of you. Don’t give up even when encouragement is not forthcoming, encourage yourself in the Lord like David. Keep doing what you are doing with excellence because, your latter end shall become great.

#BiblePromisesPrayer

* God Almighty shall breathe increase upon your little beginning and you shall end great in Jesus name

* As you start locally, you shall end Globally in Jesus Mighty Name