September 1 – God’s Reputation

“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”  (Hebrews 4: 12 NIV).

READ: John 1: 1- 14, Isaiah 54: 10-11

 

Words are powerful tools of conveying feelings, thoughts, desires and promises. Many times people say a lot of things; politicians use words to express their political mandate so as to be voted into office. A man uses words to express his desire and feelings to a lady who he wants to marry. But have we stopped to ponder about the word of God? Ask yourself who is God? Can I depend on His words?

 

Today, God wants you to know His reputation in Numbers 23:19 (NIV) which says, “God is not a man, that He should lie nor a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and then not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?” God’s word is majestic. His word has inherent power to execute whatever it is sent to accomplish.  

 

Has God spoken His word to you and you have not seen the manifestation yet? Are you beginning to doubt His word?  Let not your heart be troubled. He said His words will not come back to Him void. Every word of God concerning you must bring profit. You cannot approach God with your emotions.  Situations of life will only respond to the word of God. The devil will only respond to the word of God. And even God responds to His spoken word. Only take His words back to Him in faith and prayers and see your life transform. 

 

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, forgive me for doubting Your words by my reasoning and doubts. I come to You in faith, trust and obedience to Your revealed word. I pray that Your word will bring profit in my life in Jesus name. Amen.

September 2 – God Rules the Raging of the Sea

“Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.” (Psalm 89:10 KJV).

READ: Mark 4:35-41, Acts 27:1, Ps 107: 25-31

 

I once worked in a town where I had to travel by sea every weekend. During one of my return trips on a Sunday afternoon, the sea turned unfriendly.  This body of water is no mean thing; it sprawls majestically and defiantly in the southern part of Nigeria and empties into the Atlantic Ocean.  We had taken off smoothly with no sign of danger but somewhere in the middle of the journey the sea started some demonstrations and everything went sour. We thought it was not going to last. But this sprawling mass of water under us boiled, raged, and tumbled, rolling out violent torrent of waves beneath us. As the vehement waves rose and fell, boat rose and fell with it.  Then the skies joined forces. The clouds became dark and gloomy. Suddenly night fell in day time – angry waters below, angry clouds above – nowhere to turn to.  The flying boat operators were helpless.  Fear, fright, horror, panic in the air. I was torn between trusting God for deliverance and doing my last confessions and prayers. I knew that should the boat capsize, my rudimentary knowledge of swimming would be of no use in this boisterous mass of water.  I thought about my family. Was that my last visit? Was that the last time I would ever see them on this side of time?  Thank God that in it all we landed safely on the shores of our destination – no one was hurt, nothing was lost.

 

You may be going through some turbulence today in your life. Relax. God rules! He is perfectly in control. If you can only trust Him, you will land on safe shores. As you go out today to face your world, I encourage you to look up to trust Jesus, it is a matter of time – you will testify.

 

 

Prayer:

Lord, I know that You created everything by the word of Your mouth and you uphold them by the word of Your power.  I receive your peace today in the name of Jesus.

September 3 – The Way of the Lord

“We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.”

(Proverbs 16: 9 NLT).

READ: Romans 8: 28

 

It is natural for us to make plans in life. We set goals and target to achieve. We desire a lot of the good things of life. We also make decisions and choice that determine the outcome of our lives. But the problem is that we make these plans without adequately hearing from God. We just make choices without seeking proper direction. That is why a lot of us make costly mistakes in life.

 

What about choices like who to marry, what job to take, which state to live, what business investment to make etc? Do you consider God before making such choices? Seeking God makes us stay in His perfect will for us. If you are going to be in God’s will, be prepared to have your faith tested. While in that will, be sure to face difficult times. Keep calm when such trouble comes. Stay with the Lord; never abandon Him and you will be prosperous at the end of the day.

 

One wonderful thing about God is that despite what we go through, He will always make all things work for our good. He turns our trials to testimonies. He causes the circumstances of life to be in our favour. He eventually determines our step. And when we are making the wrong choice and going the wrong way, He brings us back. He has created us for a purpose, so He will always make His purpose in our lives prevail. 

 

 

Prayer:

Lord, I make a commitment to live a committed life. I put You first in all I do, in Jesus name. Amen.

 

September 4 – The Main Thing

“In the beginning God…” (Genesis 1: 1a KJV). 

READ: Genesis 1:1-4; I Corinthians 1:10-12; Romans 11: 25-36

 

 

Given a choice between attending a seminar, say on “the glory of God in Isaiah” and one on “the Christian and sex” to which would you go? Though the church is attempting to answer the questions people are asking, the problem is that frequently people are not asking the right questions. In today’s church we are far too people-centered and not sufficiently God-centered. It is not by accident, I believe that the Bible opens with the thunderous acclaim. “In the beginning God…” If God is not our primary focus then everything else will soon get out of focus. Today, knowledge has increased and so is the quest for it but for a Christian there is nothing far more important- the study of God. The contemplation of God seems to be a lost art these days.

 

The more we know of God, the more effective our lives here on earth would be. One of the rewards of studying about God is it forces the mind to be more humble. When our minds master other subjects we feel a degree of self-contentment and start to think how smart we are. But when our minds engage with thoughts of God we discover that there is no device that can sound His depth, and we come to the conclusion, “I know nothing.” In an age that stresses the supremacy of the human mind, it is no bad thing to learn that there is something far greater, indeed, someone far greater, the infinite and eternal God.

 

 

Prayer:

My Lord and my God, teach me how to focus on You and contemplate You so that all my vanity and pride dies, and I go my way no longer, caught up with how smart I am but how great You are, in Jesus name. Amen.

September 5 – Be Thankful Always

“Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name.” (1 Chronicles 16:29KJV).

READ: Isaiah 46: 8-10; Jeremiah 1: 4-3; Jeremiah 29:11

 

Most people wait till they get over a difficult situation, get that cheque, or get over heartbreak before they offer “thanksgiving” to God. We wait for something to happen before we give thanks, but what we don’t realize is God finishes a thing before it gets started. He said, “I declare the end from the beginning.” He finished everything concerning you before He created you. You are a product of a finished work.

 

Our future is God’s past. He had finished with our future before it started. He said to Jeremiah “Before I formed you in the womb I knew thee; and before thou came forth I ordained thee a prophet.” God was finished with the future of Jeremiah before He was conceived in the womb. Start thanking God today, because your future is already destined to be great. You are just walking in it, God has been there and He said it is good. Whatever you are going through is the beginning of the future. The future is hidden in the beginning. That future is God’s past.

 

God is not obligated to finance your plans, only His purpose. The purpose of God for your life is your future. The destiny, which He had concluded before He created us. So your destiny is God’s past. His past is good because He had been there and He saw it as very good. Inside you lies the solution to everything you are going through because it has already been accomplished. 

 

Prayer: 

Father I thank You today because my future is already concluded in my favour by You. Help me to live a life to thanksgiving to You. Amen.

September 6 – Watch Your Tongue

“Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.”                  (Proverbs 21:23 KJV).

READ: Proverbs 12:18, Proverbs 21:23, Proverbs 13:3, Proverbs 10:19

 

Insensitivity makes a wound heal slowly. If someone hurts your feeling intentionally you know how to react. But if someone accidentally bruises your soul, it’s difficult to know how to react or respond. Careless words can hurt people. Not only can they influence a person’s self-worth, they can actually shape a person’s destiny. 

 

One day in a small country church an altar boy accidentally dropped the communion wine, the officiating minister slapped him and shouted, leave, and don’t come back! That boy became General Tito, the brutal communist dictator who ruled Yugoslavia for years. In another city, another altar boy dropped the communion wine. His minister turned to him and whispered reassuringly, its okay; someday you will be a great priest. That boy became Archbishop Fulton Sheen, whose sermons touched the hearts of millions on national television. Your words either build people or tear them down.

 

As God’s ambassadors we are not afforded the luxury of idle words. Excuses such as, ‘I didn’t know you were here’ or ‘I didn’t realize this was so touchy’ are shallow when they come from those who claim to be Christians. We have an added responsibility to guard our tongues. Insensitive slurs maybe accidental but they are not excusable. We must watch what we say before we say them. For what is said cannot be unsaid. Our tongue should be an organ that should be used to heal and create, rather than to be used to injure and destroy.

Remember every idle word spoken would be accounted for. As Eugene Patterson puts it, “Every day I put love on the line.”

 

Prayer:

Lord Jesus help me to keep my tongue from evil. I refuse to curse or bring any one down with my tongue in Jesus name amen.

September 7 – The Broken Nature

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit…” (Psalm 51: 17 KJV).

 READ: Psalms 51: 17; Philippians 3: 4-8

 

A world that celebrates success doesn’t see value in broken things. But God brings beauty out of brokenness. For a baby chick to experience larger life, the shell must be broken. Every thoroughbred horse you see is the product of brokenness. It must be made to respond to the rein when tugged and recognize the voice of his master. After an encounter on the road to Damascus that left him broken and humbled, Paul declared all his laurels which were the basis of his pride dung. No dung is worth being boasted about, all dung causes disgust.

 

God uses brokenness to strip us of all self-sufficiency that the godly character of Jesus may shine in us and through us. God had to break Jacob of self-sufficiency so that Israel within him could come out. Moses had to walk the length and breadth of the wilderness for 40 years to be broken of all self and pride that the meekness in him will show forth. Then he was ready to be used of God to confront Pharaoh and bring about the victory of Israel.

 

Brokenness does not mean one is a weak person, insecure or inferior or anything degrading. Never! Brokenness is looking up to God and saying, “Lord let thy will be done in my life.” It is saying if this job is going to get done and done right, God You are going to have to do it through me. My trust is in you. The Bible says God will not despise a broken and a contrite heart, when we cast all at the foot of the Master, when we recognize that He is the one we should be looking up to. When we let go of all and allow God to take us through the wilderness to rid us of all self then we are ready for the task He has for us. Till we are broken and remolded by God we may still be too big to do some certain things He require of us.

 

Prayer:

Take me to the cross, break me Lord, remold me Lord Jesus, that You may use me effectively in Jesus name amen.

September 8 – Eternal Life

“And this is eternal life, that they may know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:3 KJV).

READ: John 17:2-3, John 3:16, 1 John 5: 11-13, 2 Peter 1: 1-8 

 

Knowing God is eternal life. This is why knowledge is stressed in scripture. The words “know,” “knowledge,” “known,” and so on are found 1,486 times in the Bible. All scriptures centers around the idea of knowing God and of conforming to His eternal will. Ignorance of Him and refusal to know and believe in Him are condemned many times. This is what will damn the soul.

 

To know God eternally is eternal life. Eternal life is not prolonged existence; it is eternal knowing of God in eternal and perfect correspondence and infinite environment. This life is only in God’s son. Thus, everlasting life is not merely everlasting existence.

 

Just as anything in nature lives to the full extent and as long as it continues in environment producing it’s life or keeping it from dying, so the believer lives according to his knowledge and appropriation of God by proper use of that knowledge. As all things in nature die when they cease to have correspondence with and utilize the environment which keeps them alive, so the believer dies and is separated from God when he ceases to live in God and appropriate by faith the benefits provided him on the grounds of obedience to the gospel.

 

Prayer:

Oh Lord keep me planted in correspondence to You. Don’t let my feet slip away from You, my God for You are my source, in Jesus name. Amen.

September 9 – Created for His Pleasure

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

READ: Revelation 4: 1-11 

 

Revelation chapter Four paints a beautiful picture of how lofty creatures worship God in heaven. A look at this picture calls to mind what they were saying in verse 11; all things were created for God’s pleasure. A lot of people race from one goal to another yet never feel fulfilled. Sometimes we envy them, yet these achievers can’t see their own worth. 

 

We make heroes out of people who are ambitious; we hold them up as models for our kids and put their pictures on the covers of our magazines. Yes, this world would be in sad shape without people who are ambitious, but left unchecked it becomes an insatiable addition to power and prestige. Imagine dying for the very success others envy! If you are in that situation, there’s only one place to turn to; God!

 

God designed you in a way that nothing can replace God’s importance in your life. You can’t find fulfillment outside the God that made you. Your job, sex, and money can’t fill that void. Only God can. You were made to worship God, to give Him pleasure and only then will you find fulfillment. All creatures in heaven were doing the one thing they were created for and that gave them fulfillment. The twenty four elders not only worshiped God, they cast their crowns before the throne. Their crowns are their accomplishments. They discovered that when you come into God’s presence you can let it all go and still not lose it. They were wise enough not to seek lasting fulfillment in their own success.

 

Stop seeking fulfillment were it can’t be found; in your success or accomplishment. Lay it all at His feet and worship Him now. That’s what you are and were made for, that’s what gives Him pleasure and give you fulfillment. Are you building any towers? Examine your motives. Blind ambition is a giant step away from God and one step closer to catastrophe.

 

Prayer:

Oh Lord I want to live for Your pleasure, help me to live knowing that at Your feet is higher than the loftiest mountains.

 

September 10 – Relationship: The Foundation for Everything

“We love Him because he first loved us.” (1John 4:19 KJV).

READ:  Hebrews 8:1-13, 1John 4: 13-21, John 13: 18-38

  

God has a very simple pattern for our relationships. First we relate to Him, then to others and we ourselves come last. I have come to realize that God’s love for us is what causes our hearts to respond in love to Him. Our love for Him is thus the response of His love for us. It is not something manufactured or contracted. His agape love produces agape love in us. Having been filled with God’s love, we are then to give ourselves to others with an energy that longs to see the same confidence we have in God, grow and develop them. It is clear that God places a high value on relationships. 

Cynddylan Jones said “the best way in which we, the people of God, can reflect the nature of God here on earth is in the way we relate.” A good relationship exists when we are using our resources for the wellbeing of others. God created us, and then recreated us to relate well to Him and reflect His character by giving ourselves unselfishly to one another. God is a relational being; check out Genesis 1:20-31, we learn from the trinity that relationship is the essence of reality, and therefore the essence of our existence. The biblical view of the trinity presents the truth of one God in three persons- Father, Son and Holy Spirit- who exist in mutual love and understanding. 

 

The Son of God came to restore humanity to a harmonious relationship. Jesus gave the greatest commandments in Matthew 22:36-39 which implies loving relationships, love of God and love of others which is what life is all about. Nothing is more important. Our value as men and women comes from the fact that God lives in us and loves us and we have something useful to give to others. Remember we are not mechanical beings- we are personal beings made in God’s image.

 

Prayer:

Oh God my Father help me to learn to value relationships, as You are a relational God. Help me to live like You, putting others ahead.