Great Command

Wednesday 25 November
READ: Gen. 37:25-36
MORE LESSON: Zech 8:16-17

Therefore, putting away lying, "Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,..: Eph.4:25. God's commandment and basis of every good relationship is found in Eph. 4:25. When truth, honesty and trust are lacking in a relationship, either with God or man, such togetherness is weak and will not be long lasting. High on the list of God's tough commands for us is telling the truth.
Telling lies can be so easy. It often seems like the best way to avoid a problem or to protect ourselves from the results of our bad choices. Note however thar it always backfires. Lying covers a multitude of sins but only temporarily. In Jewish culture and belief, it was a common thing for the heathen teachers to declare that a lie is better than the truth when it is profitable and less hurtful. Lie seemed profitable for the brothers of Joseph, that was why they sold their brother and lied to their father that an evil beast slayed him. But it is very clear that they spent the rest of their lives worrying about the consequences of their lie (Gen 37:31-33; 50:15).

Not telling the truth about things or people has great consequences as it did for the brothers of Joseph. Let us consider some of them.
I) Psa. 62:3-4 - How long will ye imagine mischief against a man? ye shall be slain all of you: as a bowing wall shall ye be, and as a tottering fence. They only consult to cast him down from his excellency: they delight in lies: they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah.
ii) Psa. 101:7 - He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight.
iii) Prov 19:5,9 - A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he that speaketh lies shall not escape. A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he that speaketh lies shall perish.

iv) Jer.14:14-15 - Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart. Therefore thus saith the LORD ... By sword and famine shall those prophets be consumed.
v) Ezek. 13:9 - And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.
The instruction, ‘Don't lie’ looks like the toughest commandment from the Lord, but it is the best way to please Him and win the respect of other people.

Prayer/Action
* Today, I repent of all forms of falsehood I have been involved in, in Jesus’ name.
* Let the spirit of truth and uprightness fully possess me now, in Jesus’ name.
* I am not a liar; I refuse the spirit of lies and I will always tell the truth, in Jesus’ name.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
I command every resistant wall to my joy to lose its strength and collapse now, in the name of Jesus.

Encourage Yourself

Tuesday 24 November
READ: Psalm 42:3-11
MORE LESSON: Deut. 3:27-28

The psalmist talking to himself even before he talked to God about his depressed soul, asked; Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me hope thou in God...:v5. Then he talked to his depressed soul about God, ...hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance: v5. David was talking to himself, but he certainly was not losing his mind. His words sound like those of someone in touch with reality.
When you are overwhelmed or depressed, remember to take advantage of the spiritual anti-depressant in today's psalm. Question your soul, testify about God's goodness, and admonish yourself to hope in the Lord. After testifying to others about the change that Jesus has made in your life, minister to yourself as David did by personally applying the very encouragement you have given to others.

Moreover, it is very clear from today's text that anyone can be discouraged; prophets, kings, servants, believers and unbelievers. David the King got his courage by talking to himself and with God. In addition, courage can also come through friends and when we care to talk to our loved one's about our situations. Consider the examples recorded in 1Sam. 23:16-18, And Jonathan Saul's son arose, and went to David into the wood,...And he said unto him, Fear not…. 
The promise of God in His Word can be a sure strength when we are depressed and troubled, …the LORD spake unto Joshua… Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them… Be strong and of a good courage... Only be thou strong and very courageous…: Josh. 1:1-9.

However, when the unexpected happens, the greatest courage and strength comes from within as it is written also about King David.
And David was greatly distressed for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters; but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God . 1 Sam. 30:6. 
Think about it. When do you get discouraged? What Bible verses give you hope when you are down? You Use them to pray now!

Prayer/Action
* As one that is from above and above all, I will win over every negative situation, in Jesus’ mighty name.
* By the power of the Holy Spirit, I overcome everything that is trying to overcome me, in Jesus’ mighty name.
* Father, let heaven be at work in my situation so that it will not end the way the enemy wants it, in Jesus’ mighty name.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
No hidden or public agenda of the enemy over my life shall see the light of the day, in the name of Jesus.

Dealing with a Deficit Future

Monday 23 November
READ: Lk. 15:11-24
MORE LESSON: Hos.10:12

A deficit future is a tomorrow that has been squandered today. There are many people squandering their tomorrow by the type of life they live today and they do not know it. Some of them are even doing it gladly, like the prodigal son. The story of the prodigal son is a lesson on the repercussion of the riotous lifestyle of many people today. The prodigal son had a temporary immediate gain and pleasure, but he paid dearly for it later in life. The day the young man collected his inheritance prematurely, he left like a hero but then a little while after, the only option he had was to gladly eat with pigs.

When you prematurely eat your evening meal in the morning, it will be delicious. But in the evening, hunger will teach you the lesson that night hunger can be deadly and then the night becomes longer. Premarital sex can be pleasurable while it lasts but it breeds barrenness and incurable diseases tomorrow. Stealing from your parents can make money available today just as smoking, drinking alcohol and such vices are apparently pleasant but results in a deficit future. Whatever exists in you that will cause a sad, bankrupt future, I chase them out now, in Jesus’ name. Your today will bring a happy tomorrow, in Jesus’ name.

For a better tomorrow, stop living a wasteful life today. Begin to build reserves/savings for your tomorrow no matter how small; stop eating everything that comes to you. Reject anything that is sweet today but that will breed sorrow tomorrow. Always ask yourself what the eternal result of what you are doing is, and what contribution or otherwise your action will make to your future.

Thank God that the prodigal son came back to his senses; he took a bold step to go back home and found grace. Today, you too can stop reason and ask God for help. Our God, the gracious Father of all prodigal children is still waiting to receive you if you can take a positive step today. I release grace and favour for your recovery. Esau wept to recover but he didn't get it (Heb. 12:16-17). I prophecy that unlike Esau you will get yours if you can seek God with a sincere heart today.

Prayer/Action
* Lord, today I reverse every loss I have suffered due my reckless past.
* I turn to credit every inadequacy posted to my future by my past mistakes.
* I declare healing for every pain that was brought about by my past.
* I terminate every ancestral inherited pain and deficit waiting in my future, in Jesus' mighty name.

--Spend the whole of today praying and taking positive corrective steps over anything in your life that you know will bring you sorrow tomorrow. Pray that God will open your eyes of understanding to the wrong things you do and ask Him for mercy.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father, I destroy the operatives of all satanic powers sent to dishonour my destiny, in the mighty name of Jesus.

Labourers and Harvesters

Sunday 22 November
READ: John 4: 37-38
MORE LESSON: I Cor. 3: 6-8

A young missionary came from Europe to Africa and after investing all his lifetime in a community, he had only one young convert. He lost his wife and child to malaria in the land and after all the years, he went back to his country, thinking he had wasted the bulk of his life. He would have died a bitter old man, but for the fact that close to his death he met someone from the same field who gave him a good report. The one convert he had for all his labour had grown to become a great evangelist and church planter in that country. Thousands of people were saved and many churches planted in many nations through him. Today, the Gospel is waxing stronger and stronger in that land. The old missionary repented of thinking that he wasted his labour and praised the Lord for the harvest that others were reaping from his labour. Then he passed on to glory.

When you look at life, you realise that everything you enjoy today is a result of the labour of people who have gone ahead of you. The technologies like cars, phones, computers etc that make life easy for us today are the results of the efforts and labour of some people in the past. Some of such people didn’t even live to benefit from the results of their labours. It was after their lifetime that the efforts began to yield results for other people.

This is true in the spiritual also. All your labour in the spirit such as your prayer, fasting, giving and diligent service to God are counted for harvests in the future. Even after you leave this world, other people, including your children, will benefit from such harvests. Many of us are reaping the good of the spiritual labours of our parents. This is the reason why each person should be very diligent in all the things of God because he is laying up harvest for his seed and the future generation.

The converse is also true. Laziness in the things of God and all the evil that men might do today would also to be paid for by future generations, including the children of the perpetrators of evil. Many countries are suffering and struggling today because of the lack of vision, corruption, embezzlement and evil of their past leaders. Of a truth, ...one soweth and another reapeth. . . other men laboureth, and ye are entered into their labors: John 4: 37-38.
Today, I charge you to start laying down spiritual and physical foundations that others will build on and reap from even when you are gone. This is the path to making everlasting impact.

Prayer/Action
* Pray that your labour in life will never be a waste, in Jesus’ mighty name.
* Pray for a life of impact that extends beyond your generation.
* Ask God for His grace to live a life filled with results, in Jesus’ mighty name.
* Pray for the power of divine speed and fulfilment in life.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
By the leading of the Holy Spirit, I shall always be at the right place at the right time all through my destiny, in the name of Jesus.