Topic: Standing By Christ [Teens Open Heaven 8 August 2018]

Memorise: And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you, though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved. – 2 Corinthians 12:15

Read: 2 Corinthians 12:13-16 (KJV)

Bible In One Year: Psalm 82-84, Romans 8:19-39

MESSAGE:

According to John the Baptist, it is possible to be a friend of the Bridegroom – Jesus Christ. How? By loving and keeping His commandments (John 14:15). It is enough to love and obey Him occasionally, your love and your obedience must be sustained. If your love for Jesus has dwindled or your obedience is now selective, it is doubtful that you are a friend of the Bridegroom. If there is an instruction that the Lord gave to you which you have failed to obey, it puts your relationship at risk. Can the Lord look at you and call you His friend.

According to the experience of John the Baptist, the friend of the Bridegroom stands by him and hears him. Your first duty as a friend of the Lord Jesus is to stand by Him. How can you stand by Him today? To stand by the Lord today entails standing by His children – your fellow brethren. It means giving them what it takes to make them what God wants them to be. It entails giving to those you know are in need, giving words of encouragement to the discouraged, and so on. What you do for your brethren is done for the Lord. Have you seen your brother in need? Did you hide yourself from him? From today, stand by the Lord and the brethren!

Action Point: Your ability to stand by Christ is determined by how much you stand by fellow believers in times of need or distress. Ask for the grace to stand by Christ always.

Also Read: Teen Open Heaven Daily Devotional by Pastor Adeboye

Teens Open Heaven 8 August 2018 Hymn 11

1. Stand up! stand up for Jesus,
Ye soldiers of the Cross!
Lift high His royal banner,
It must not suffer loss.
From vict’ry unto vict’ry
His army shall He lead,
Till every foe is vanquished,
And Christ is Lord indeed.

2. Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
The solemn watchword hear;
If while yelling sleep he suffers,
Away with shame and fear.
Where’re yeah meet with evil,
Within you or without,
Charge for the God of battles,
And put the foe to rout.
3. Stand up! stand up for Jesus !
Stand in His strength alone;
The arm of flesh will fail you,
Ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the gospel armour,
And watching unto prayer;
Where duty calls, or danger,
Be never wanting there.

4. Stand up! stand up for Jesus!
The strife will not be long;
This day the noise of battle,
The next the victor’s song.
To him that overcometh
A crown of life shall be;
He with the King of glory
Shall reign eternally.

Daily Devotional for Teen’s 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.

Topic: Let’s Forgive One Another [DCLM Daily Manna 8th August 2018 Daily Devotional]

Text: Matthew 18:15-22 (KJV)

Key Verse: “Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven” (Matthew 18:21,22).

MESSAGE:

Joseph’s brothers had sold him into slavery in Egypt. But by God’s providence, his fortune was turned around and he became a great ruler with great power and authority in the greatest kingdom on earth at that time. Eventually, fate brought the brothers before him, but he forgave and nourished them and their households. That is the path of honour.

Our text deals with offences and forgiveness among brethren. Jesus outlines modalities to follow in settling disputes in the Church. The offended person takes the initiative, approaches the offender to make peace. If he accepts his error, the matter dies there. If not, others can be involved. But if he yet refuses to accept his fault, he should be regarded as a heathen. When all things are amicably settled, believers can command heaven’s attention in prayer with assurance of answers.

The issue of forgiveness, love and peace in the family and in the Church is of paramount importance to God. Offences will surely come, but the decision to forgive and forbear rests with the believer whom God has also given the grace to forgive an enemy. There are devastating consequences of unresolved issues among believers.

Love and forgiveness among brethren should be visible in the Church, because by it men know that they are truly followers of Christ. A believer should also love his enemies. Christ led by example; He prayed for those that crucified Him. Stephen did the same. Every believer must follow the same example because without forgiveness, there will be confusion and endless strifes.

Thought For The Day: Forgive others so that God can forgive you.

Bible Reading In One Year: Jeremiah 4-6

If you missed yesterday devotional, please click to read “Deeper Christian Life Ministry, DCLM Daily Manna HERE

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.

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.

Topic: The Maintenance of Quality Spirituality – One of the Most Important Things in Life [Seeds of Destiny 8 August 2018 Daily Devotional]

Scripture: But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33

Thought For The Day: Until your spiritual life is in order, your natural life is out of order.

Today, we want to look at yet another very important thing in life which is, the maintenance of quality spirituality.

It has been confirmed that the quality of your spirituality determines the quality of your destiny. Until your spiritual life is in order, your natural life is out of order. The real needs of man are spiritual needs, and until spiritual needs are met, physical needs are not met.

Beloved, you have not succeeded in life until you have succeeded with God. For instance, as a medical student, if you have distinction in an elective course like General Studies (GS) but fail your core courses like Human Anatomy and Biochemistry; you have not excelled at all in what will make you a doctor. This is how life is, when your spirituality is neglected, even if you have money, fame, political influence, or have travelled round the world, you have not succeeded; you have only succeeded in putting the first thing last and the last things first. You have not excelled at all if you have not excelled in maintaining quality spirituality. That shall not be your portion in Jesus’ Name.

Majoring in the minor and minoring in the major; that is how most people live their lives. Some people are physically good looking and robust on the outside but ugly and thin in the spirit. This is not correct.

Beloved, my counsel is, develop a quality relationship with God because if your spiritual life is not working, you are in a state of emergency. Life is all about developing quality relationship with your Creator.

Remember this: Until your spiritual life is in order, your natural life is out of order.

Assignments:
1. Decide to give priority attention to your spirituality
2. Endeavour to succeed with God before you succeed with men and in the things of life.
3. Develop the discipline of consistent prayer life and study of the Word.

Prayer: O Lord, give me the grace to maintain a quality relationship with You. Help me not to succeed in other things in life at the expense of my quality relationship with You, Lord, in Jesus’ Name.

FOR FURTHER UNDERSTANDING, GET THIS MESSAGE: THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN LIFE.

Daily Bible Reading: Ezra 7:1 to 8:20, 1 Corinthians 4:1 to 21, Psalm 30:1 to 12, Proverbs 20:28 to 30

Amazing Fact: Gentoo penguin is the fastest swimming bird in the world.

Today In History: 08/08/1876 – Thomas Edison received a patent for the mimeograph. The mimeograph was a “method of preparing autographic stencils for printing.”

Quote: A man in spiritual struggles lacks spiritual strategies and a man in business struggles lacks business strategies. Culled from 21 FOOLISH THINGS PEOPLE DO by Dr Paul Enenche

Also Read: Seeds of Destiny by Pastor Paul Enenche

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

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.

Topic: Walk in the Light [Andrew Wommack 8th August 2018 Daily Devotional]

John 11:9 “Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world.”

Text: John 11:9-10

Jesus compares His decision to return to Judaea to a man traveling during the day. Daytime travel doesn’t guarantee a hazard-free trip but the light does allow us to see the hazards. At nighttime, it’s inevitable that we will stumble. Likewise, walking in the light of God’s direction doesn’t mean that there won’t be problems, but the alternative of “doing our own thing” (that is walking in darkness) is guaranteed to get us into trouble.

Jesus was obeying the leading of His Father to return to Judaea. He could see exactly what was going to take place and He was going to walk in the light that His Father had given Him. Our decisions should not be based on whether or not we will be hurt in some way as a result of our actions, but we must discern God’s will and do it regardless of the cost.

The misconception that, “if God is in it, there will be no problems” is not only wrong, but is dangerous. This kind of thinking has caused many people to “back off” from what God has told them to do when things don’t go the way they expected. Our problems do not come from God, therefore, we should not pray for problems and not embrace them as being “a blessing from God in disguise.” Furthermore, when trials come, we should not be shocked (1 Pet. 4:12) and not let problems or the lack thereof confirm or deny God’s will for us.

Jesus died for each one of us. Each one of us ought to live for Him. Offering ourselves to God is not just a one-time deal. We have to die daily to our own desires. This has to be a living, ongoing commitment to the Lord.

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: Unity in Scripture [Billy Graham’s Devotional Wednesday August 8, 2018]

. . . holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. — 2 Peter 1:21

Although one can derive inspiration from any portion of the Scripture, it is better to have an understanding of the general structure of the Bible to get the most out of it. The Old Testament is an account of a nation, Israel. Out of that nation came Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. The New Testament is an account of a Man, the Son of man, the Savior. God Himself became a man, so that we might know what He is like. His appearance on the earth was the central, most important event of history. The Old Testament gives the background for this event; the New Testament tells the story of its fulfillment. You will find a unity of thought and purpose which indicates that one mind inspired the writing of the whole.

Prayer for the day: Inspire me, Lord God, as I read the Bible so that I may be able to understand more clearly Your divine teachings.

“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.