Topic — Love: A Principal Ingredient in Marriage (Part 3)

Dear Reader,

Marriage built on anything less than mutual love and respect cannot weather the storms of life. Paul writes: Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church (Ephesians 5:25). Likewise, he instructed Titus saying, Train the young women to love their husbands, to love their children (Titus 2:4). This week, I will be sharing with you on mutual submission.

Submission has to be done in love. When submission is rooted in love, it is perfect and brings God’s presence down in the home. Even if a woman has an unbelieving husband, if her submission to him is absolute, she will wake up one day to see the man ready and eager to follow her to church. I saw from 1 Peter 3:1 that a woman does not need words to win her unsaved husband to Christ. Her actions can perform the miracle.

Note that the submission I am talking about is not slavery, but submission in love. God’s Word says: That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed(Titus 2:4-5).

What does God expect of women in this area? First of all, we must understand that submission is an attitude and not just an action. Submission begins in the heart. There is a story about a little boy that was instructed by his teacher to sit down and be quiet. Because of his rebellious nature, he did not want to do this, but was forced to by his teacher. Later, the children in the class were chiding him by saying, “Boy, you really sat down and shut up when the teacher approached you with the paddle.” The rebellious boy replied, “I may have been sitting down on the outside, but I was still standing up on the inside.”

Many times, women who claim to be submissive are only outwardly going through the motions of submission, while inwardly they are still resenting their position in life.

On the other hand, the husband must consciously ignore the negative, unattractive things about his wife and say the positive. He must express his love through the things he says about and to his wife. He must always tell her how much he loves her, how much she means to him, how he loves the way she does certain things, etc. With time, he will discover that she begins to measure up to his expectations. If he calls her a virtuous woman, she will long to live up to that title. The faith she needs to become all the things he says she is, comes as she constantly hears them (Romans 10:17).

Express your love, be concerned about her welfare, notice new things about her and buy her gifts from time to time. In essence, cherish her, nourish her and ravish her with your love. It is not unmanly to demonstrate your love in your actions and attitudes. Don’t criticise or ridicule her; don’t make her feel there is nothing she knows how to do. Encourage and motivate her to be her best for God.

As husband and wife, you must make sure you learn to speak one another’s love language. If your spouse responds to physical touch, caress him or her, touch him or her. If he likes words of encouragement, speak encouragement often to him or her. If he or she is the type that responds to acts of service, then be pro-active and do things for your mate.

Likewise, if it is quality time, spend the time and lastly if he or she responds best to giving gifts, make sure you surprise him or her often with gifts. In time, he or she will inevitably reciprocate the same to you. This is how you make each other feel good.

Love is something we choose to do. Choosing to love means:

• I choose to Love my husband/wife
• I choose to be patient with my mate
• I choose to be kind to my mate
• I choose to please my mate
• I choose to forgive my mate
• I choose to honour my mate
• I choose to trust my mate
• I choose to be understanding to my mate
• I choose to grow with my mate
• I choose to encourage my mate
• I choose to help my mate
• I choose to be truthful to my mate
• I choose to be faithful to my mate
• I choose to be unselfish with my mate
• I choose to be hopeful with my mate
• I choose to speak in love to my mate
• I choose to be my spouse’s mate the rest of my life!

What “Choice” have you made today?

Even if you are troubled in your marriage or your partner is not responding as you would like, you must still make the choice first. Do not let your heart become hardened. Ask God for the strength for you to choose to “love” today. Expecting nothing in return, open your heart to the gift of God’s Love.

To be able to benefit from what has just been discussed, you need to become a bonafide child of God. You become a child of God by confessing your sins and accepting Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. If you are already born again, rejoice because your case is settled. If you are not yet born again and you desire to do so right now, please pray this prayer with faith in your heart: 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 personal 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).

“Please click HERE to read other inspiring articles by Pastor Faith Oyedepo”

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: Minister God’s Love [Andrew Wommack 27 August 2018 Daily Devotional]

Luke 19:8 “And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.”

Text: Luke 19:1-8

Zacchaeus was rich but Jesus made no demands for him to give away all his goods to the poor as He did with the rich young ruler. Zacchaeus had already repented and money was no longer his god, as was revealed by his actions. It seems that Zacchaeus was going above and beyond the requirement of restitution as stated in Mosaic law by offering to give half of his goods to the poor and to repay fourfold for his theft.

Publicans were hated by their fellow Jews. They were especially despised by the religious Jews as the epitome of sinners and Jewish religious laws prevented devout Jews from keeping company with any publican. To eat with a publican was unthinkable as the Jews considered this actually partaking of the publican’s sins. This is why the people reacted so adversely to Jesus eating with Zacchaeus.

Jesus did not eat at Zacchaeus’ house to participate in his sin but to extend mercy and forgiveness to him. This is always the criterion whereby we can judge whether or not we should be involved in a certain situation. We must not participate in other men’s sins, but the Lord doesn’t want us to retreat to monasteries either. We are the salt of the earth (Mt. 5:13), and to do any good, we have to get out of the “salt shaker.” If we can be in control and minister the love of God, then we are right to associate with sinners. But when we are being controlled by the ungodliness of sinners, we need to take control or withdraw.

Also 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).

Topic: The Secret of Surrender [Billy Graham Daily Devotional 27 August 2018]

Just as you used to be slaves to all kinds of sin, so now you must let yourselves be slaves to all that is right and holy. — Romans 6:19 (TLB)

We have heard the modern expression, “Don’t fight it-it’s bigger than both of us.” Those who are meek do not fight back at life. They learn the secret of surrender, or yielding to God. He then fights for us! Instead of filling your mind with resentments, abusing your body by sinful diversion, and damaging your soul by willfulness, humbly give all over to God. Your conflicts will disappear and your inner tensions will vanish into thin air. Then your life will begin to count for something.

You will have the feeling of belonging to life. Boredom will melt away, and you will become vibrant with hope and expectation. Because you are meekly yielded, you will begin to “inherit the earth” of good things, which God holds in store for all who trust Him with their all.

Prayer for the day: Let me yield to You this day, Father, all my innermost thoughts. I cannot hide from You.

“If you missed yesterday devotional, please click to read Billy Graham’s Daily Devotional HERE

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.

Open Heavens 27 August 2018 Monday Daily Devotional by Pastor E A Adeboye – Eating Your Parent’s Sour Grapes?

Topic: Eating Your Parent’s Sour Grapes?

Memorise: “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.”- Ezekiel 18:20

Read: Jeremiah 31:29:33 (KJV)

29 In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.

30 But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge.

31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:

32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:

33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Bible in One Year: Psalm 73-77, Matthew 26:26-46

Open Heavens 27 August 2018 Monday MESSAGE:

One of the blessings of the cross of Jesus Christ is the removal of generational curses that have been the bane of mankind since the great fall of Adam and Eve. The Holy Spirit reveals this to us in Colossians 2:14, saying:

“Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;”

The work Jesus did on the cross of Calvary brought about the fulfilment of the prophecies that came through Ezekiel and Jeremiah in today’s memory verse and Bible reading. These prophecies foretold the nature and character of the New Covenant under which we are now operating. I encourage you to take out time to read these prophesies in full, so that you will have a full understanding of your place in the New Testament under the Blood of Jesus Christ.

The Holy Spirit through Prophet Jeremiah prophesied that a time would come when everyone living under a new covenant would be responsible for their own actions and inactions. The good news is that we live in that time. Through the new covenant in the Blood of Jesus, we are empowered to individually live our lives to the glory of God and be accountable for the way we live our lives. Speaking on this new covenant in Hebrew 8:10, the Holy Spirit says:

“For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:”

Through this verse of Scripture, we understand that it is the Almighty God who helps us keep His new covenant through the Holy Spirit. This is an awesome provision which you must key into. With God’s help, we are also able to escape the impact of divine judgement invoked by parental sins. Nevertheless, we will not escape the consequences of our own sins if we continue in them. The new covenant however opens the door of opportunity for God to wipe away and forget our sins as we confess and forsake them. Hebrews 8:12 says:

“For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.”

Even if some people are still experiencing the destructive power of generational curses, its evil effects can be rendered powerless over you by the new covenant. The Blood of the new covenant makes all the difference. Are you a partaker of the new covenant?

Action Point: Open Heavens 27 August 2018 Monday

Confess and believe that you are now under the new covenant in the Blood of Jesus, for which reason no ancestral covenant can work against you or hold you bound.

Also Read: Open Heavens 26 August 2018 – Living Under Baby-Rulers?

Open Heavens 27 August 2018 Monday Hymn 3: Hymn: What Can Wash Away My Sins?

1. What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Chorus:
Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

2. For my cleansing this I see,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
For my pardon this my plea,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

3. Nothing can for sin erase
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
Naught of works, ‘tis all of grace,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

4. This is all my hope and peace,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
This is all my righteousness,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Open Heavens 27 August 2018 Monday 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. The Open Heavens devotional application is available across all mobile platforms and operating systems: iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Mobile and PC. Open Heaven 27 August 2018.

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.