BLESS YOUR INHERITANCE: Devotion for Monday August 31, 2015

BLESS YOUR INHERITANCE      Monday August 31, 2015

Text: Psalm 28:6 – 9                Memory verse: v 9

It is proper to show appreciation for answers to our prayers. This is what this part of this psalm enjoins us. We can also bless the name of the Lord even when our prayers have not been answered. Blessing the name of the Lord in anticipation is a demonstration of our faith in God that He is able to meet us at the point of our needs. The Psalmist delights in the divine response (28:5) to his prayer of supplication (28:1 – 4). His confident trust in God is indicated in the titles he gives God for his divine protection.

We are God’s inheritance and the Psalmist pleads with God to bless His inheritance. He knows that our blessings come from God. Without His blessings upon us we are doomed. Thus it is important to always ask for God’s blessings. This psalm ended with Benediction. This shows the essence of saying the prayer of blessing in our daily worship as God commanded (Numbers 6:23 – 27). The Lord will bless and keep you as you go out today.

Food for Thought: The blessings of God make us what we are.

Prayer: God bless me, my family and works of my hand as your inheritance.         

YOU SHALL EAT OF YOUR LABOUR: Devotion for Saturday August 29, 2015

YOU SHALL EAT OF YOUR LABOUR      Saturday August 29, 2015

Text: Isaiah 3:9 – 15       Memory verse: v 10

Ecclesiastics 6:2 say something that should make us pray about God’s blessings upon our lives. There is abundant encouragement to the righteous to trust in God, and for sinners to repent and return to Him. In today’s world, sinful living often appears glamorous, exciting, and clever. But sin is wrong, regardless of how society perceives it, and, in the long run, sin will make us miserable and destroy us. God tries to protect us by warning us about the harm we will cause ourselves by sinning. However, to the righteous, there is the promise that all will be well, they shall eat of their labour.

Eventually the righteous will receive God’s reward, and the wicked will receive their punishment. It is disheartening to see the wicked prosper, while we (Christians) struggle to obey God and follow his plan. However, let us keep holding on to God’s truth and take heart! God will bring about justice in the end, and He will reward those who have been faithful. Beloved, be faithful to the end.

Food for Thought: Are you still faithful to Him?

Prayer: Lord, make me faithful to you and grant that I will eat of my labour.

IT BROUGHT BLESSINGS TO HIS HOUSE: Devotion for Monday August 3, 2015

IT BROUGHT BLESSINGS TO HIS HOUSE

Text: 1 Chronicles 13:14                          Memory verse: v 14

One would have expected Obed-Edom to refuse housing the Ark of Covenant after the unfortunate incident that took Uzza’s life but he could not disobey the King’s order. The order from a king is always obeyed whether it is convenient or not. He accepted it in good faith. His action was like the submission of Mary to God's message through Angel Gabriel (Luke 1:38). Obed-Edom may also have warned his family about the Ark of Covenant, which made the entire family to enjoy God's blessings and peace within the period that Ark was there. It is the duty of Husbands and Fathers to teach their families obedience and reverence to God and all that belongs to Him.  The reverence Obed-Edom and his family had on the Ark of Covenant brought blessings to them. God blessed him and all he had because of the Ark which stayed there for just 3 months.

Sometimes we focus only on the blessings God gives us, while forgetting that when we sin, God punishes us (Hebrews 10:31). At other times, however, we concentrate so much on judgment that we miss His blessings. Don’t fall into a one-sided view of God. Along with God’s blessings comes the responsibility to live up to his demands for fairness, honesty, and justice. Let this be your watchword this day, this month and always in Jesus name.

Food for Thought: Do you reverence Holy Things of God?

Prayer: Grant me the wisdom to do things that will bring blessings to me.

JABEZ’S PRAYER: Devotion for Saturday August 1, 2015

JABEZ’S PRAYER         Saturday August 1, 2015

Text: 1 Chronicle 4:10     Memory verse: v 10

In these two verses that say something about Jabez, he is remembered for a prayer request rather than his heroic acts which made him honourable. This prayer is what people love to pray always. In his prayer, he asked God to (1) bless him, (2) help him in his work (extend my lands), (3) be with him in all he did, and (4) keep him from trouble and pain. Jabez acknowledged God as the true center of his work. Do you acknowledge God as source of your being and all that you have?

Most times we pray about God’s blessings. However, when we pray for God’s blessing, we should also ask Him to take His rightful position as Lord over our work, our family time, and our recreation. It is only when we have God at the centre of whatever we do that such can prosper in our hands. Obeying Him in daily responsibilities is heroic living. Do you obey God in all you do?

Food for Thought: Jabez got an answer because he loved God.

Prayer: O Lord, my God, help me to love you as much as you love me. 

THE OIL CEASED

THE OIL CEASED              Wednesday July 1, 2015

Text: 2 Kings 4:1 – 7            Memory verse: v 6

In accordance with the words of Elisha, the woman and her sons collected jars from their neighbors, pouring olive oil into them from their one flask. The olive oil was used for cooking, for lamps, and for fuel. The oil stopped flowing only when they ran out of containers. The number of jars they gathered was an indication of their faith. God’s provision was as large as their faith and willingness to obey. Beware of limiting God’s blessings by lack of faith and obedience. God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20).

While there was a vessel to fill, there was oil sufficient; and it only ceased to flow when there was no vessel to receive it. This is an emblem of God’s grace. If we find in any place or at any time that the oil ceases to flow, it is because there are no empty vessels there, no souls hungering and thirsting for righteousness. As you start this month, you should create a heart that longs after God’s righteousness and your oil will never cease. God is willing to pour on us His blessings as we empty ourselves of our sins, pride and self. Are you ready for that? We wish you a month of ever flowing blessings from God. 

Action: What can you do to sustain the inflow of God’s blessing into your life?

Prayer: Lord, help me to empty myself of every hindrance to your blessings.