With Open Eyes I

Thursday 8 June
READ: Luke 24:30-31
MORE LESSON: Mk. 10:46-52

The text says when Jesus broke the bread and gave to the disciples to eat, their eyes opened. A force higher than them blindfolded them but another greater force opened their understanding. As soon as their eyes were open they said, “We actually have been walking with our Master and we did not know''. They were walking with the Lord that they were talking about and they did not know because their eyes were closed.
There is a limit to what men see because a lot of things are hidden from the physical eyes. The truth is that a man cannot possess what he cannot see even if it is within his reach. For example, it is impossible for a man to spend the money he doesn't know he has. One of the major problems with God's children is the problem of not seeing. The Bible says, ...we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses...: Heb 12: 1. This implies that life is like a football match; we are the players on the pitch and there are supporters on the gallery watching the match. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Peter, Paul, the apostles, the angels and a host of other saints in the gallery of Heaven are cheering us on to victory. Each time we score a goal on earth, they rejoice in Heaven. Why then do believers get downcast? It is because they cannot see. A man gives up because he can't see the heavenly provision available for his success and cannot see that he is close to his breakthrough.
One of the forces that blindfolds men from seeing what God has prepared for them is carnality. Carnality, in this context, is walking by sight rather than by faith. In the text, Jesus broke bread and gave the men. The bread represents the Word of God, which is Spirit and life. It is only the revelation of God's Word that can remove the blindfold of carnality. A man can read the Scripture with closed spiritual eyes and walk in darkness because his understanding is limited to the letter, missing out on the Spirit. We must desire to see the Word with open eyes so that we can see beyond the letter into the Spirit because the letter kills but the Spirit gives life, light and understanding (2 Cor 3 : 6).
It is time to cry out to the Lord like blind Bartimaeus and say, “Lord that I may see”. Paul prayed for the Ephesian Church (Eph. 1:17-18), that the eyes of their understanding would be enlightened. David prayed in Psa. 119:18 that the Lord would open his eyes that he might behold wondrous things out of His law. As you study the Scripture, pray that you will read with open eyes and capture the spirit and the life therein.

Prayer/Action
* Lord, enlighten the eyes of my understanding to see Your provision for me, in Jesus’ name.
* I come against every veil and darkness covering my spiritual life, in Jesus’ name.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
I am God's battle axe, I shall be renewed for greater works, in the name of Jesus.

The Weapon of Praise and Worship

Wednesday 7 June
READ: Psa. 22: 3
MORE LESSONS: Acts 16: 23-40

But Thou art holy, O Thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel: Psa. 22:3. Singing praises is a very powerful weapon for a believer. If you want to have a successful life, learn the power of praise and worship. When Paul and Silas were locked up in prison, prayer and praises brought the presence of God that broke their chains and threw open the prison doors. You can never overestimate the power of praise and worship. People say, 'When everything else fails, try praise'. Well, you'd better use praise first. Praise is not a trial and error thing; go for praises and your situations will surely turn around. Prayer rises to meet God but praises bring God out of His seat into your situation; and when God arrives, Power has arrived.
Praising God is a great weapon that can devastate the kingdom of darkness. Job complained that in all his crises no one said to him, Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night: Job 35:10 (NKJV). That was because he later discovered that when you pass through a midnight situation in life, singing praises brings you out of the impossibilities and destroys what the devil is doing in your life. If all the time Job spent seeking out what sin he had committed and listening to different opinions, had been spent in praise and worship, I guess his crises would have been over much earlier.
There is a difference between praise and worship. Prophetic worship is about giving God His worth in a prophetic way even when the situation doesn't look good. You take your eyes from the situation and fix your gaze on the Almighty God, and begin to ascribe His worth and attribute His works to Him. You take a good look in your spirit at the Almighty God and begin to call Him by His names and His works. You may or may not be singing, dancing or clapping but you give God His due; that is prophetic worship.
Nothing brings a man into the presence of the Lord faster than giving God prophetic worship. This is what Jehoshaphat and the children of Israel did and won the battle without fighting (II Chro. 20: 14-30). When you enter into prophetic worship, in the heart of the strangest situation of life, you become a spectator in your battle. God Himself comes down and takes over your affairs.

Prayer/Action
* Receive a heart of gratitude and praise today, in Jesus’ name.
* Give God thanks for all He has and has not done.
* Praise God for your expectations in life.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
This sixth month, my light shall burn brighter and brighter and I shall wax greater and greater unto the perfect day, in the name of Jesus.

Vessels of Praise II

Tuesday 6 June
READ: Luke 8: 1-3
MORE LESSON: Luke 21: 1-4

We are considering being vessels of praise and today we will see things that a man can do that will make him become a vessel of praise unto Jehovah, And it came to pass afterward, that He went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: AND THE TWELVE WERE WITH HIM, And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils, And Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of their substance: Lk. 8:1-3. In this text, Jesus had twelve disciples who were with Him when He was preaching the good news. These disciples became vessels of praise simply by following Jesus around. Without these twelve, the gospel wouldn't later have gone abroad. So a man can become a vessel of praise by giving his life time for God’s service.
Certain women that Jesus healed were also mentioned for always ministering to Him. Some of those women’s names were mentioned, others were grouped as 'many others....', but they all ministered to Jesus. You can become a vessel of praise by taking note of what is lacking in the lives of ministers of God and taking out of your substance to meet their needs. When God blesses some believers they usually hide behind the pretext that,'There is nothing we can give to thank God enough', and they truly give nothing. That is not correct reasoning, As a vessel of praise you should give God what you have. The widow in the Bible gave two mites, it was the least but that was her all and the best. What is left after you have given to God is what determines the quality of what you have given and whether it can be called your best or not. A vessel of praise will never come empty before God; he will always bring Him his best.
Another widow was the old prophetess Anna who was serving God with fasting and prayer (Luke 2: 36-38). She was married for just seven years when she became a widow, probably without a child. But she stayed in the temple and worshipped God with fasting and prayer. She didn't give in to self-pity neither was she fasting for money, husband or children but rather she gave herself to worshipping God with fasting and prayer. That woman was a vessel of praise. With all the challenges you are facing in life, do you still worship God? This woman was an example of worship by fasting and prayer instead of fasting for needs. You can become a vessel of praise by creating time to fast and pray for God’s work and people. It is another form of worshipping God that brings praise to Him. I pray that you will be a great vessel of praise to God, in Jesus’ name.

Prayer/Action
* Ask God to endow you with the wisdom to know what to do to provoke blessings on you today, in Jesus’ name.
* Ask God to be merciful to you so that all your services will be acceptable.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father, let the heaven of profits open over my life, business and marriage this month, in the name of Jesus.

Vessels of Praise I

Monday 5 June
READ: Lk. 11: 27-2
MORE LESSON: 2 Kgs. 7:1-10

A vessel of praise is one whose actions cause men to praise God. Jesus was a perfect example of a vessel of praise by His works and His words. In the main text, Jesus was teaching and doing miracles and a woman was so impressed that she could not but burst out saying, And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked. But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it: Luke 11:27-28. Jesus by His work caused praises to go forth.
There are also vessels of disgrace. When people repeatedly make negative statements to God and man because of your actions, you are a vessel of disgrace. Children who are well taught but living contrary to the teachings, and causing people to make negative remarks about their parents are vessels of disgrace. May you be a vessel of praise, in Jesus’ name.
You become a vessel of praise by providing solution to problems. If you solve problems anywhere you find yourself, even when not called upon, you will be remembered as a vessel of praise. Some people only cause problems anywhere they go making themselves so difficult to get along with. Such people will also be remembered for that. Being a vessel of praise or of disgrace in life is a choice. Everyone will be remembered for something. The good that a man does will speak for him while he is alive and even after he is dead. In the same way, there are those who will be remembered for the problems they cause.
Today, I urge you to make the choice to be a vessel of praise- be the reason why somebody is happy and praising God every day from today. There is a reward for being vessels of praise. The little boy whose lunch pack was used by Jesus to feed 5,000 people obviously had God’s reward and may be the owner of the 12 baskets left over. Paul says: and let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not: Gal. 6:9. It is wonderful to be a tool of blessing (Jn. 6:9-11). Everyone who has ever received a blessing from God owes God the debt of being a blessing to someone else, because we are blessed to be able to be a blessing.

Prayer/Action
* Ask God to make you a vessel of praise, in Jesus’ name.
* Ask the Lord to make you a blessing to someone today, in the name of Jesus.

TODAY'S PROPHETIC PRAYER
I command the fire of God to destroy every force of wastage and destruction operating in any area of my business and life endeavours, in the name of Jesus.