Pleasant Places

Friday 8 April
READ: Psa. 16:1-6
MORE LESSON: Psa. 78:53-55

Today's reading is a psalm of great encouragement to the saints of God. The saint of God is the one who has believed and received the Son of God and is following Him (Jn.1:12). To such people the Lord gives them the experience of pleasant places in all vocations and endeavours of life. Another version puts Psa.16:6 this way: Fair places are marked out for me, I have a noble heritage. God marks out specific places for His children. These are ordained, appointed, set out places and in such places His children thrive and flourish. Even if it is in the desert, when God is the one who marked the place for you, prosperity will locate you there. If you want to be successful, happy, joyful and fulfilled, locate God's marked place for your life.
There are several reasons why men fail and do not have the experience of pleasant places.
1.) When you are not in God's marked place for you; labouring in another man's field brings no harvest. Locate your field.
2.) Laziness can make a man miss pleasant places experience, Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: so shall thy poverty come as one that travelled, and thy want as an armed man: Prov.6:10-11. Sometimes laziness has a spiritual root. The force of the evil one must be broken in order to come out of apathy, drowsiness and laziness.
3.) Pleasant places can also be missed because of ignorance of what is yours, what to do and how to do it. You must know what is marked for you as your portion and go for it, The Lord shall open unto you His good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand; and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow: Deut.28:12. God has a good treasure for you; pray that your eyes will be opened to it. Take your place by knowledge; no man is greater than what he knows. Add value to your life by self- development, train up and increase your capacity.
4.) Pleasant places can be missed because of wrong company (I Cor. 15:33).
5.) Pleasant places can be missed by refusing to seek the Lord. Seeking the Lord brings a man into the experience of pleasant places, And he sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God; and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him to prosper: II Chron.26:5. Here is a king who was just sixteen years of age but entered into the experience of pleasant places because he sought the LORD. Seeking the Lord gets God to work for you in this world and you enter into pleasantness effortlessly.

Prayer/Action
* Lord, let the lines fall unto me in pleasant places and give me a good portion.
* I reject the attitude of laziness, drowsiness, etc that makes me miss my pleasant places.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
Agents of spiritual slumber and compromise, get out of my life now, in the name of Jesus.

We are Brethren

Thursday 7 April
READ: Gen. 13:1-8
MORE LESSON: Phil. 2:1-5

And Abraham said unto Lot, let there be no strife, I pray thee, between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren: Gen.13:8. Other versions write that phrase “we are brethren” as “we are close relatives” or “we are family”. Everyone born into this world is born into a family; everyone belongs to one family or the other. In a family, offences will happen but God does not want us to dwell on offences. This is one major lesson we all are to learn from today's reading. We all must carry the consciousness of brotherhood like Abraham did with Lot, whether it is biological family or the household of God. Many people have lost the consciousness of belonging to a family and have isolated themselves, leading to satanic attacks and major losses to them personally and to the family at large.
Abraham was blessed and made rich by God (Gen.13:2) but he did not keep it to himself alone; he allowed the blessings he enjoyed to flow to his brother Lot, And Lot also, which went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents: Gen.13:5. This pattern of Abraham is true brotherhood. Many among our brethren have no food but we don't know nor see it because we don't care. Such attitude is anti-family and definitely anti-God. As God blessed and increased Abraham, Lot also increased and was blessed. Whether in church or at home, we all need to rise up to the demands of brotherhood, even in the face of offence. As we increase in substance individually, it must not lead to jealousy and envy; it must produce appreciation and complementing one another. It must lead to spreading the wealth to one another, helping others to also acquire land, businesses and factories where we are located and across in the land and the nation (Gen.13:9).
We must consciously deal with satanic plots to make us fight, strive or quarrel. Wherever there are men with diverse opinions and views, there will likely be disagreement. But we must allow the cord of being part of a family to weld us stronger than our disagreements.
Abraham was the older man who brought Lot out of Ur, and he had the right to choose first and Lot after, but because of the family bond he allowed the younger man to choose first. He took the initiative to allow peace to reign and satan lost the battle over his family. Be the one to settle that quarrel and reconcile. Do not allow satan to succeed in sowing evil seeds of un-forgiveness, malice and strife in the family. Abraham so much valued brotherhood and family ties that he rescued Lot from captivity (Gen.14:14-16), interceded for Lot before God that Lot and his family might not partake in destruction (Gen.18:22-33). Play your part in your family and in the household of faith. We are brethren!

Prayer/Action
*Lord, I renounce and cast the spirit of strife and quarrel out of my home and family.
*I declare today that I will play my part to keep my family (physical/spiritual) united and progressive.
Take a step of obedience, reconcile with that brother/sister in forgiveness and love. Call or send a text of reconciliation today.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father, this day, remove every disobedient Jonah from the ship of my life, in the name of Jesus.

Speak into the Atmosphere

Wednesday 6 April
READ: Mark 4:35-39
MORE LESSON: Eze. 29:1-3

In today's reading, it had already been concluded by Jesus that He and His disciples were going over to the other side but the enemy said it would not be. So also it is for every one born with a great destiny; your other side is that greatness, that promotion, that impact full ministerial calling, that relevant business the enemy will always say no to. The devil sent a storm to hinder them from crossing over to the other side; the boat became full of water though Jesus was there with the disciples. Jesus was with them but nothing was done until the disciples spoke. The major lesson of life here is that keeping quiet when you should speak endangers your life. It leads to defeat and makes you a casualty in the battles of life.
The disciples probably assumed that because Jesus was there with them, storms would not come. This can be a costly assumption. Having Kingdom power and authority does not mean challenges will not come; rather, they will come to try that power. You have to unlock the power by speaking. Do not assume, but act, speak, For verily I say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith: Mark 11:23. Jesus Himself spoke this profound truth in this verse of the Scripture and it cannot be broken; so you have to speak into the atmosphere even in the face of contradictions. Desires without prayers and speaking them out are wishful thinking. Speak in the days of trouble and God will hear you and give you answer. The only major condition is that you must speak without doubt or unbelief in your heart. Believe that what God says He will, He will do and He can do what He says. Doubt your doubts and believe God to the end.
What do you speak?
I) Speak what God says: situations must respond to what God says. Find out what God says about your situation and speak that out.
ii) Make a decree (Job 22:28). A decree is an authoritative word backed by law. Tell satan his boundary in your life; let him know what he must not do.
iii) Speak a command (Isa.45:11). A command is backed up by the authority of a superior; God is the most superior.
Whatever you refuse to say ‘No’ to will become normal in your life. Disapproval is expressed by speaking. Rise up now and refute all satanic troubles your boat is filled with and there will be a great calm. Speak now!

Prayer/Action
* Satan, your destructions in my life come to an end today, in Jesus’ name.
* I speak to every storm of life, “Peace, be still”.
* I command a great calm in my situation right now, in Jesus’ name.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
In the name of Jesus, I break the power of evil relationships and defiling associations off me!

Altar of Help

Tuesday 5 April
READ: Gen.12:6-9
MORE LESSON: Luke 1:5-11

God relates with men through altars. Altars are high places of spiritual exchange. They are places where memorials are created for generations. Noah was the first man to build an altar to God (Gen. 8:20) and Abraham was the next. Abraham built an altar to God in Gen.12 and he continued to build altars to God throughout his years of sojourn. Abraham had a strong consciousness of the altar that made him to enjoy help all through his years on earth. A wise Christian that will make it in this world must know the place of the altar. Abraham watched over the altar to the point that in Gen.15 he stayed awake to drive vultures away from eating the sacrifice he offered to the Lord.
Men who build altars to God have unique testimonies. In Gen 20 Abraham’s wife was taken by the king of the land, and Jehovah the God of Abraham's altar rose on his behalf to fight his battle and plead his cause before the king. Anyone who has altars raised to Jehovah will be defended by Him. Abraham did not have to go to Abimelech to fight physically; his altar spoke for him. You do not need to fight physically and howl abuses to fight your enemies. Expend your strength in building solid altars of prayer, fellowship and sacrifice to God and He will arise on your behalf. Restoration came to Abraham with riches added; when you service your altar of help properly, God gives restoration with benefits. In Gen 21:33-34, Abraham erected an altar in Beersheba and God caused Him to sojourn successfully in a strange land. It is a lie that you cannot prosper in the land because you are not an indigene. God who caused Joseph and Daniel to prosper in their land of sojourn is alive to make you prosper in yours. God also did it for Isaac in the land of his sojourn (Gen.26): he obeyed God and sowed where God planted him and prospered in the land. He enjoyed help because he also built an altar of help in Gerar, And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac's servants digged a well: Gen.26:25.
What can hinder the altar of help from bringing help for a man?

 i) Refusal to service the altar due to delayed answer to prayers (Luke 1:5-11). Zacharias and Elizabeth serviced their altar even while childless and their testimony changed; God blessed them. 

ii) Doubts at the altar. Keep the faith. Zacharias almost lost the help from the altar due to doubt but thank God that the altar of God also speaks mercy. Through mercy he still got his blessing though he had to be dumb for a season. This couple serviced the altar and got a unique son worth ten sons; the forerunner of the Lord Jesus came through them. 

Receive grace to service your altar and great help will be your portion.

Prayer/Action
* I receive grace and diligence to service my altar.
* I receive a new consciousness of the altar that I might truly benefit thereof, in Jesus’ name.
* The altar of God will bless me and lift me on high this year, in Jesus’ name.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
I declare that my enemies will not capture me the way they captured Samson, in the mighty name of Jesus.