Enlighten my Darkness

Thursday 5 January
READ: Psa. 18: 28
MORE LESSON: John 1: 1 - 5

One of the most terrible things that can happen to a man is for him to live in darkness. One characteristic of darkness is the inability to see clearly. During the daytime, it is always easy to walk around, but once night comes, men stumble. Jesus expressed this fact in John 11: 9 – 10, ...If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him (NKJV). A man can be in darkness physically or/and spiritually. Whichever form of darkness a man finds himself, the answer to darkness is to seek external illumination. Darkness cannot help itself; light must come from an external source. Therefore, when the psalmist found himself in darkness, he said, For thou wilt light my candle: the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness: Psa. 18:28. David knew that he didn't have the answer to his darkness problem; he needed the Lord to enlighten his darkness.
Darkness denotes being blind in the spirit of the mind. A man who is not born again is blind in his spiritual man, so he is in darkness (2 Cor. 4:4). Ignorance is also another form of darkness. When a man is ignorant, he does things that put him in bondage and inflict self-damage. Bondage is spiritual darkness. Demonic possession, obsession and oppression are activities of darkness. It is darkness that makes a man feel so downcast to the point of committing suicide. Darkness is the absence of light; wherever there is darkness, movement becomes a struggle. Therefore, every form of stagnation, struggle, poverty and sickness are activities of darkness.
It is important to identify the activities of darkness so that darkness will not hide in one corner of your life and be inflicting damage on you while you think that life is business as usual. Seek out every form of darkness in your life and destroy it. David was a giant slayer, prophet and king but he still prayed to God to enlighten his darkness. This shows that it is possible for a man to be born again, Spirit-filled and even be a preacher while darkness buffets one or more areas of his life. You might be battling with a form of darkness in your finances, family, marriage, career, spirit or body.
The only solution to darkness is light. The psalmist cried for light. When things become so difficult and there seems to be no way, you need to switch on the light. Some problems do not bow to the application of natural principles; they only bow when spiritual light is switched on. Jesus is the Light and today as you call on Him, He will come and put an end to every activity of darkness in your life.

Prayer/Action
* I decree, no darkness shall withstand the light of God in my life, in Jesus’ name.
* By the light of God, every divination and evil enterprise are exposed, in Jesus’ name.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father I declare that the forces of wickedness and darkness shall bow to my light this year, in the name of Jesus.

Let there be Light

Wednesday 4 January
READ: Gen. 1: 2 - 3
MORE LESSON: John 1:1 - 5

In the beginning, when God was to create all things, the whole earth was void and formless. The earth was in a chaotic state because darkness was on the face of the deep (Gen. 1: 2). Everywhere darkness reigns, there is chaos, void and formlessness. Even God had a chaotic situation on His hands as long as darkness was allowed to rule on the earth. He had to command light to come so that order could be brought into the world. Enough of disorder in your life; enough of confusion and hopelessness – let there be light.
Everything responds to light. When light comes, darkness fades away. God commanded light to come in the beginning and from there He could solve every other problem. It is only when the light problem is solved that every other problem can be solved. It is when a man is born again and spiritual light comes that every other problem of his life can receive solution. Even in a nation, until the light (power) problem is solved, the economy, social development and infrastructure cannot respond. We have to learn from the all-wise God of Creation, He didn't try to solve all the problems at once even though He is powerful enough to; He started by addressing the light problem. He thereafter attended to the other problems one by one.
What you need in your life is light; when you have light, everything else will fall in place. You may be hungry and poor now, when light comes, it will subsequently put food on your table and wealth in your house. Do you know that even the food that all creation eats is synthesised by light? The process of photosynthesis is the basis for all the food that we eat. John 1: 4 says, In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. Light is life; the more light you have, the more life you have.
If your destiny is currently buffeted by any form of darkness, you have to declare light just as God did. The same Spirit of God that decreed light over darkness in the beginning lives in you, so you can decree light and dispel all darkness in your life, For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ: 2 Cor 4:6.

Prayer/Action
* Declare that the challenges associated with the early stages of life will not stop you, in Jesus’ name.
* Let there be (Mention your desires), in the mighty name of Jesus.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
From the rising of the sun to the going down of same throughout 2017, I shall not record loss in any area of my life and destiny, in the mighty name of Jesus.

The Mystery of Praise II

Tuesday 3 January
READ: Psa.34:1
MORE LESSONS: Acts16:25-26

When God made man, He made him spirit, soul and body. According to 1Thess.5:23b, …and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. So when the psalmist in the first text demanded of his soul to sing praises to the Lord, it was actually his spirit that was instructing his soul to praise the Lord. Why did the spirit of the psalmist summon his own soul to praise God? Our human minds tend to focus on the prevailing challenges around and not on the prevailing power in praise within.
The realms of our intellect and logic cannot fathom that we must praise God because praise is not an intellectual concept; it is a spiritual mystery. That is why, with a closer look, we also will notice that the psalmist was not issuing an advice or suggestion but an emphatic command! David was arguably Israel's greatest King and an anointed man of war from his youth; so if anyone knew anything about issuing commands, David did. Now, here comes the great man of war speaking about praise with military undertones to reveal that he understood that praise was actually a lethal weapon of warfare.
Throughout Bible history, from the exodus of the children of Israel to the time of the apostles, the mystery of praise was one weapon consistently deployed by the children of God to quench the fiery darts of the devil and his cohorts. The mysterious power in praise owes to the fact that God dwells in praise and where ever the presence of the Lord is, no demonic operation can thrive there.
Praise is a vehicle of the presence and power of God. True praise is irresistible to God. It commands the manifestation of the full weight of the Host of Heaven to your life and situation. Whenever we praise God whole heartedly, God surely visits our lives. One visit from the Lord Himself is more than enough to turn everything around for the better and we can testify like David in Psa.126:1, When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream. Praise is a spiritual transaction through which you give God what He desires and He in turn gives you your heart’s desires. Truly, wise people praise God even before their breakthroughs show up. Be wise, praise Him in advance.

Prayer/Action
* Father, as I praise You continuously from today, cause me to experience the unfathomable power of praise, in Jesus’ name.
* Lord, give me the wisdom to praise You always, in Jesus’ name.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
This year I shall operate by the force and speed of light, in the mighty name of Jesus.

The Mystery of Praise I

Monday 2 January
READ: Psa. 103:1
MORE LESSONS: Psa. 150: 1-6

It doesn't matter what you are going through right now, if only you dare to praise the Lord, I tell you it is only a matter of time before the Hosts of Heaven will visit your life with power and deliverance. The original Hebrew word translated, “Lord” in the anchor text is ad-o-noy' and it suggests “the controller, master or commander of an army or troop”. This is why we often see the same word appear in other scriptural texts as Lord of hosts or Lord of the heavenly hosts. So when we offer praises, it is the Lord God of the armies of Heaven that arises on our behalf.
The hosts of hell cannot stand the slightest sway from the Lord of the armies of Heaven. No wonder at Jericho, God instructed His people to make a shout of praise and as soon as they did, the walls of that great city came crumbling down because the Lord and His Host of armies came into the scene. We see the same manifestation of the Lord and His hosts in the prison where Paul and Silas were chained; at the sound of their prayers and praises, there was a great earthquake. The gates flung open and the chains and shackles fell loose from their hands and feet. If you must experience the mighty touch and transforming power of God in your life, you must consciously cultivate the heart of praise. Psa.34:1 says, I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
The heart of praise is one that is persuaded that the Lord deserves the praise irrespective of what is going wrong in the immediate surroundings or who is looking on, And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose: Rom.8:28. He who offers praise is fully persuaded of the promise of God. The Bible says in Heb.10:23, ...for he is faithful that promised. That's why he who praises can go to sleep in a storm because the Lord of Host said in His Word, ...I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee: Heb.13:5b.
There are two categories of praise offered in the Kingdom of God; conditional praise and unconditional praise. The power, provision and protection of the Lord of Host are always at the disposal of people with unconditional praise on their lips. We were created to give God praise. And as we do what we were created to do, God does for us what gives Him pleasure to do; to intervene in the matters of our life. Praise Him NOW!

Prayer/Action
* Pray that God will open your heart to comprehend the mystery of praise, in Jesus’ name.
* Pray that as you praise God today and ever, your destiny will take a new turn, in the mighty name of Jesus.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
2017, I am the evidence of a shining light as the Lord lives, in the mighty name of Jesus.