It's not yet Party Time

Tuesday 21 March
READ: 1 Cor. 9:24-27
MORE LESSON: Heb. 12:1-4

If someone gets born again today, the devil immediately goes to work to strategise how to ensnare him. However, many times the church celebrates so much that we forget that getting born again is just the beginning of a very long journey to entering Heaven. The Bible likens the race of faith to athletics. Have you ever seen a sports person on the track celebrating before he wins the medal? If you start celebrating before you cross the finish line, someone might just push forward to breast the tape. There is simply no room for celebration till you cross the finish line.
The Christian life is a walk that continues until we meet God and you don't rest until you finish your course. Athletes don't stop or relax on track while running. The track is not a place to throw a party. You can do all the partying when the medal has been handed over to you. The focus and discipline must continue till the finish line. God's expectation is that you finish your race well. You have a responsibility to keep working on, no matter how much you think you have done and also to keep helping other people on the track to run their race to the finish.
This also applies in ministry; a man works for God and probably he has a congregation of one thousand people in a year and then believers start applauding so loud that if he is not careful he gets into pride and dies before his day. Believers celebrate starting like there is no finishing. However, be informed that only the end counts with the Lord, it is he who endures to the end that will be saved (Matt. 24: 13). When you are doing well and people start commending you, don't let that make you relent and everyone you have left behind now overtakes you.
Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God: Heb 12:1-2. Keep looking at Jesus and keep pressing on till you reach the finish line. At the end of the race, God will throw a big party (marriage supper of the Lamb) for us. However, while you are here on earth, it is not yet party time.

Prayer/Action
* Lord, help me to run and finish well and strong like Paul, in Jesus’ name.
* I rebuke every obstacle on my way in the race of eternity, in Jesus’ name.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
The Lord is my light and salvation, I shall not be afraid of any man, I shall triumph over every evil in the year, in the mighty name of Jesus.

Mighty Men of David

Monday 20 March
READ: 1 Sam 22: 1 -2
MORE LESSON: 2 Sam 23: 8 - 24

The Bible talks about some men who gathered themselves to David in the cave of Adullam when he was running from Saul. David needed great men that would help him fulfil God's prophecy of kingship over his life. Instead of noble men and army generals coming to him, the Bible says every one that was in distress, or discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men (1 Sam 22:2). David needed great men to help him fulfil his destiny but rascals and street boys gathered to him for help. Some of them were in debt and they needed him to help them pay their debts. Some were hungry and needed him to feed them; yet others were frustrated and needed David to encourage them. David himself needed help as God's anointed king who was nowhere near the throne but was being pursued by his enemy.
However, instead of looking around for the help which he needed, he decided to give help to those who came to him for help. David was a man who was very conversant with trouble. Instead of focusing on his troubles, he started solving these people's problems. Of course, everywhere problems are solved, a crowd soon gathers. So it wasn't long before many people started coming to David. In this life, people have lots of problems. If you are a solution provider, you will always have people flock to you. When they come to you, you can bring them to God because He is the solution provider. Don't be afraid, thinking, What if they come and overwhelm me and I can't solve their problems? You are not the problem solver, let them come and God will solve the problem through you.
It was the problematic people that David raised that became the mighty men of David (2 Sam 23: 8). When David grew old and his strength was gone, these men stood by him and fought for him (2 Sam. 21: 15 – 22). They became so loyal that they could lay their lives down for David. It was these men that fought with all their heart till the kingdom was given to David.
The easiest way to find help is to help people; the easiest way to be raised in life is by raising others. Your future is in the people you are impacting today. There is no lasting greatness outside of raising someone today. If you have not raised men in the place where you are, you can't be counted to be great. True greatness is yours as you learn to raise people and help them to become great.

Prayer/Action
* Father, make me a solution to the problem of many around me, in Jesus’ name.
* Ask God to lead you to such act that will bring forth the mighty man in you, in the name of Jesus.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father, I shall obey and serve You, therefore I shall spend my days in prosperity and my years in pleasure, in the mighty name of Jesus.

Constant Addition

Sunday 19 March
READ: 2 Pet. 1: 5 – 10
MORE LESSON: Isa. 28: 10

There is no adult who was born as big as he/she is now. We got to the physical stature that we are now by adding. If a child is born and there is no addition to his height and weight, then the parents start running up and down. Even nature counts it abnormal to stay in one state; life is about addition. A successful life must be a life of constant addition.
Similarly, in our spiritual life, we must keep adding. Today's text admonishes us to add and add more. If you are born again, this means that you had faith in the name of Jesus to receive salvation. That is wonderful but that is not all; you need to add. The Bible says you should add virtue to the faith that you have. Virtue means good character; so add good character to your salvation. Don't live in a way that makes mockery of the salvation that you profess.
After adding character, the Lord wants you to add knowledge. You need to know more of God; so read the Word, come to fellowship and learn as the Word is taught. You also need knowledge in other areas of life that will make you successful, so take more courses, training and certificates that will give you more opportunities. Go to school and add to your knowledge.
The Bible says you also must add self-control to your knowledge. You can't just give your body everything it wants, you need self control. So add fasting and prayer, add discipline and hard-work. Add patience, godliness, kindness, and love. Just keep adding. Add success to your spirituality. It is good that you love God but don't be a failure in your finance and academics. So don't be lazy; work hard and pay the price for success. Add skills to your character, add practice to your skills, and excellence to your work.
A man who doesn't stop adding will realise one day that he has grown beyond where he was before. You may not be able to achieve everything you want in one day, but if you do not stop adding, you will get there one day. So today, you need to ask yourself, What have I added today?
Remember no addition, no continuing, no progress, no advancement! Adding more should be a life time exercise, you must never stop. There is life and power in adding.

Prayer/Action
* Father, help me daily to pursue perfection, in Jesus’ name
* Father, give me grace to constantly add virtue to my life, in Jesus’ name.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father, let Your amazing grace give me amazing results and testimonies this year, in the mighty name of Jesus.

Be Patient

Saturday 18 March
READ: Heb. 10: 36-39
MORE LESSON: Luke 8: 15

Patience is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5: 22). It is one powerful virtue that is often overlooked. We talk so much about faith, love, peace and so on but we forget the power of patience. Heb 6: 12 says, ...be followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. This shows that the celebrated heroes of faith were patient people. God is love (1 John 4: 8) and love is patient (1 Cor. 13: 4 NIV); so God is a God of patience. As God's children we must be people of patience.
We need to exalt the virtue of patience now than ever in this age, where everyone is on the fast track. People want everything and they want it now. We want fast food, fast money, fast mail, fast banking, fast lane; the faster the better. Even in the Church of God, people don't believe in waiting anymore. They feel if it does not come 'sharp-sharp' then it means you don't have faith. If the pastor prays for them and the thing doesn't happen instantly, they say that the pastor is not anointed; they start looking around for a more anointed man so that the miracle can happen right away. This is what makes many to become victims of false prophets. Why not wait on God? Waiting is the proof of faith. Patience is the real test of faith. Those that believe do not make haste (Isa. 28: 16).
1 Cor. 13:13 talks about three things you must have to be a successful Christian. They are faith, hope and love (charity). All these three work out in patience. Faith is having patience with God. Faith is when you are trusting God for something and the thing is not forthcoming but you stay patiently, knowing that God will do it. Faith is patience.
Hope is patience with people and situations; it is not giving up on people because you know that good can still come out of them. Hope is not throwing in the towel because you know good can still come out of that situation. Hope entails patiently waiting for your change to come.
Love is patience with yourself. Many people are not patient with themselves; they put so much pressure on themselves. They penalise themselves and are mean to themselves. Why not relax and love yourself. It is only when you love yourself that the love can flow to others. Don't give yourself ulcer out of starvation because you say you are too fat and you are not beautiful. Love yourself.
In Luke 8: 15, the good seed fell on the good soil but it still needed patience to be fruitful. But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the Word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience. You will get there; be patient.

Prayer/Action
* Father, help me to add to my faith the virtue of patience, in Jesus’ name.
* In the name of Jesus, I receive grace to patiently wait for God's promises for my life.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Wherever I need help today, in the name of Jesus, I shall not be turned back.