Developing Strong Family Ties

Thursday 24 March
READ: Gen. 2:15-25
MORE LESSON: Matt. 19:4-6

One of the earliest things God did to establish and consolidate all that He created at the beginning was instituting marriage, And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him: Gen.2:15-18. Marriage is an institution ordained by God for the blessing of mankind. Let us therefore examine issues about it:
1. Married life may be likened to a marathon race. The fact that you did not start well does not mean you will not end well. Great beginnings are not as important as the end. When you are tired along the line and feel like giving up, all you need is the determination to keep plugging away and moving on. Only then will you be able to make it to the end.
2. To have strong family ties, we must close up gaps between members in the family by loving them as you love yourself. Forgiveness, dialogue and togetherness enhance good family ties. Unforgiveness is usually one of the main causes of disaffection in the family.
3. One major purpose of marriage is for the man to have an agreement partner. This can be promoted by being open with the other person and agreeing quickly in adversity. Not allowing anger to linger brakes adversity like nothing else. Amos 3:3 encourages us to stay together in unity.
4. Neglecting your marriage for service to God can be a problem. This was part of what Eli did that in one day both Eli and his children died. And if you neglect your service for marriage as it was in the case of Vashti, partying here and there, it is also a big problem. Marriage and service to God must be wisely balanced by creating enough time for the two.
Moreover, for a family to have very strong family ties, there must be the altar of personal time with God as well as couples altar where burdens are shared together. Issues about how to raise the children, deflate tension in the family and similar challenges can be prayed upon at the family altar. Having leisure with family members and creating excitement for one another is a great boost. Creating time to listen to each other and keeping the terms of the marriage covenant will keep both the marriage and family in a good state.

Prayer/Action
* Lord Jesus, help me to develop a stronger sense of commitment to my family.
* Father, I receive all it takes to build good family ties in my home.
* I rebuke the power of family breaker over my marriage and family, in Jesus’ name.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
I agree with God that the prevailing forces of sin shall not have dominion over me, in the name of Jesus.

Maximising Life

Wednesday 23 March
READ: James 4: 14
MORE LESSON: Psa 90: 10

The issue of spending your life in a way that you can say at the end of life that you made maximum use of the life that God gave you is so vital. James describes life as a vapour that appears for a moment (Jam 4: 14) and after that it disappears. The psalmist also confirmed it by saying that the best of man is 70 years, and by reason of strength it can extend to eighty but it soon ends and we fly away: Psa. 90: 10. The brevity of life is so amazing that it can be truly said that the years of life actually fly away.
This is why it is important to spend your life wisely and make maximum use of it. You have to live your life with a sense of destiny and urgency. Note that years are not stagnant but flying and time lost is gone forever. If you should do something and you don't, God can still help you to do it but definitely it won't be at the time you should but didn't- that time is gone forever. If you spend life doing nothing and having fun around as if life is a long holiday, you will look back and realise that the time of life has flown by. I have noticed that Africans, especially Nigerians, love holidays. And the way they spend their holidays is not impressing. A man says it is public holiday and sleeps, plays games or watches movies from dawn to dusk not realising that it is life that is ticking away. Many spend time going to lots of places that are not necessary, doing unnecessary things, sitting, gisting and laughing away while something precious and irrecoverable is slipping by. There are so many time- wasting activities in the lives of many which they begin to notice at old age, when there is no strength to redeem the time, that they have really done little or nothing much with life. It is time to call upon God to help in this matter.
How do you normally spend your day? Wasted days become wasted years and wasted years become wasted life. Time is life; so spend your time doing things that are impactful in life and eternity. Anything that does not have a corresponding contribution to your destiny should not be allowed. The way to maximise your day is to remove everything that doesn't add to your life and destiny from each day. I have found that one of the things difficult to control in life is time. However, it is possible with discipline. Discipline is difficult for man but when you hand over yourself to God, He will help you to lead a disciplined life. Only a man who has Jesus and is controlled by the Spirit can live a disciplined life. Spend your time, which is your life, on things that matter in life and eternity.

Prayer/Action
* Pray against the spirit of procrastination in your life in Jesus’ name.
* Receive the wisdom of God to maximise your time and opportunities in Jesus’ name.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
Everything I need to make 2016 good shall voluntarily walk up to me and respond to me, in the name of Jesus.

The Fear of the Lord 2

Tuesday 22 March
READ: Prov. 1:7
MORE LESSON: Prov. 14:34

Lack of the fear of the Lord is the root cause of all evil found on the face of the earth today. The fear of the Lord doesn't mean cowering before God in terror, rather it is utmost reverence and a desire to do God's bidding, which makes a man to love what pleases God and abstain from everything that displeases Him. If we have individuals that fear God, then we will have communities that fear God which will result in a nation that lives in the fear of God. It always starts from the individual to the nation, so the change that the world wants can only be achieved when individuals imbibe the fear of God. We can have a society free of all crime and trouble, but it must begin from one man at a time, to the family, community and then to the nation. The fear of the Lord is the key.
The beginning of some many evils like cultism, homosexualism and other vices in our schools can be traced to when the teaching of the fear of God was removed from the curriculum. Some nations decided that anything religious should be removed from public life and academics so they banned praying and reading the Bible in school assembly grounds. They abolished the fear of God from the curriculum and exalted secularism. The children are paying for the resultant decadence now as satan has taken over those societies. Everywhere people remove the fear of God, they have automatically enthroned satan. I pray that satan will not find the right to rule in your life, family and community, in Jesus’ name. The only way that this prayer can be answered is for you to enthrone the fear of God in your life, family and community. The best heritage you can give your children is to pass a life of reverence and fear of God to them.
The moral decadence and human problems in the nations of the world can only be solved from the grassroots. We have to teach our children the fear of the Lord in the homes and in the schools. There is a need for our primary schools, secondary schools and tertiary institutions to return to teaching the fear of God to the students. If we can bring God back into our curriculum, we will see that politics, economy, national security and every aspect of national life will take a positive turnaround. I require from everyone today to begin to pray that the fear of God be restored to every area of our lives in this nation and I charge you as a person to live your life in the fear of the Lord and make sure you pass on the life of reverence for God to someone else.

Prayer/Action
* Ask God to forgive our nation for encouraging godlessness.
* Dethrone evil authorities that despise the fear of God in our nation.
* Promise God that you will reverence Him all the days of your life.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
2016, I shall not turn from battles, I shall prevail in battles, in the might name of Jesus.

The Fear of the Lord 1

Monday 21 March
READ: Prov. 1:7
MORE LESSON: Prov. 8:13

The book of Proverbs 1:7, which is our text for today says, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. The fear of the Lord is living a life governed by the desire to only please and never to displease Him. This desire in any man births an abstinence from everything that is contrary to the desire of God. The fear of the Lord is the root of righteous living and the absence of the fear God is the cause of all evil that happens in the life of a man, society, nation and the world at large. If everybody takes God first in every discussion and in every action they take, what do you think the world will look like? The major problem men have is lack of fear of the Lord. Lack of the fear of the Lord is the reason men cheat on one another. It is the reason why armed robbers take other people’s things and sometimes even shed blood. Lack of the fear of God is why politicians go as far as killing one another to get into office and then take all public resources for self-gratification. The number one need in our lives, nation and world is the fear of the Lord.
The Bible says that the fear of the Lord is the foundation on which wisdom is built. This helps you to clearly imagine the opposite; the absence of the fear of the Lord is the beginning of all the foolishness in the world today. It is when men do things that are contrary to the will of God and despise the love of God and the Word of God that folly reigns supreme in the society. In the same way, where God is honoured, feared, respected and obeyed, things go well. When the principles of God are esteemed in a life and society, righteousness flourishes, producing fruits of wisdom and well-being.
I want you to check your life today and check whether there is a proof of the fear of God in the way you live your life. Today provides an opportunity for you to appraise your business, place of work, political office and everything you do and check the degree of the fear of God with which you operate. It is also time to pray for Nigeria that the fear of God will rule in the hearts of individuals, families, communities, leaders and the nation at large. Prov 19:23 says, The fear of the Lord tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil. The fear of the Lord is the answer to all the problems we have had in this nation and of mankind and the only way to reverse it is by accepting the Lordship of Jesus in our lives as individuals, families, communities and nations. Jesus in us is the hope of glory and the evidence of a God-life.

Prayer/Action
* Pray that the fear of God will rule your heart.
* Ask God for grace to be guarded by the fear of God in all your decision making.
* Ask God to forgive you of all disregard to Him, His ordinance and His servants.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
Good things will locate me this day and abide with me, in the name of Jesus.