Desiring More of His Glory

Monday 29 January
READ: Exodus 33: 18-23       
MORE LESSON: Psalm 63:1-8  

Moses started a journey to a greater dimension of God's glory by making a request that nobody before him had ever made. Many of his fore fathers had encountered God but his divine encounter was different as  He saw God face to face (Exo. 24:10). The reason Moses was able to go far  in his encounter with God was that he was a man that  always desired more of God. Moses had experienced God at the burning bush (Exo. 3:2); he had spoken to God one on one as a man with his friend (Exo. 33:11); he had seen and performed miracles, signs and wonders but he was still not satisfied; so he asked for more and said, “Lord, show me Your glory”. Glory starts when a man desires and pursues the right thing which is the knowledge of the glory of God. I pray that you will make the right request to God today.

It is what a man desires that he attracts to himself. If he desires money, he  will always think, talk and attract money. However, the man that desires God and pants after Him will get God. When you acquire the glory of the Lord , you will attract every other thing to your life.  Therefore, the best desire a man can have is to know God more and partake of His glory. God granted Moses' desire  and he saw  God's face. After seeing the face of God, his own face began to shine and the children of Israel could not look at his face anymore but began to bow before him. When you contact God's glory, your countenance will shine and people will bow to you. He who kneels before God can stand before men.

It is time to desire God above all material things. Like Moses, become a man who is always hungry for more and more of God. Remember Matt. 5: 6, Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Those that hunger and thirst for God are the ones that will equally receive the precious gifts and material blessings that people run after.
Steps to finding more of God
1. Accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour.
2. Accept that there is more of God than you have seen, Phil. 3:10.
3. Like King David, ask for more of God, Psa. 42:1.
4. Spend more time in the study of the Word and prayer, Jude 1:20, 2 Tim. 2:15.
5. Be sensitive to things of God and His workings, Lk. 24:15-16, 30-32.   

Prayer/Action
* Ask God to increase your thirst and hunger for Him.
* Ask God to reveal His glory through you.
* Receive the grace to be sensitive to God and His workings.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Thank You Jesus, my path shall drop honey, honey and honeycomb throughout 2018, in the mighty name of Jesus.   

A Nazarite

Sunday 28 January
READ: Judges 13:3-5    
MORE LESSON: Exodus 28:35-36

A man can be specially set apart unto the Lord. There is no greater blessing than when God lays claim on a person to be His own. To be the chosen one of the Lord is a rare privilege that is to be treasured and guarded with all of one's strength and life. There have been people whom God has specifically claimed for Himself. An example of such in the Bible were the Nazarites, set apart by God unto Himself. Any man that wants to be used mightily of God needs to be set apart.

According to the text, Nazarites were not allowed to live anyhow. Holiness of life is God's expectation for those that are set apart for Him. Nazarites were not permitted to drink wine or similar strong drinks, no unclean thing could be allowed near them, no razor should come upon their heads. They were to be wholly dedicated to the Lord. In return, the Lord endowed them with power and might so that they could accomplish the extra-ordinary tasks that the Lord placed before them.

This is a lesson for us today. To be a people of power, we need to be Nazarites unto the Lord. The secret to a life of exploits is total consecration and dedication to the Lord. One cannot live anyhow and expect to be a special vessel in the hand of the Lord. There are several ways one can do this. Moses was predestined by the Lord to be the deliverer of Israel and Aaron and his descendants were chosen by the Lord to be set apart as priests unto Him. As priests, they were given special conditions of living which demand holiness unto the Lord. We also are to be set apart as kings and priests to the Lord, therefore our watchword should be holiness unto the Lord. In Samuel's case, it was the mother that made a covenant with God that her seed would become a Nazarite unto the Lord. David, on his own part, positioned himself to be found of the Lord (Psa. 89: 20). David went after God with all his heart and positioned himself through service, worship and love for God till God's heart was stirred and He chose David for Himself and put His anointing upon him.

God has called you to Himself, it is left for you to set yourself aside specially for Him. Whoever you are, whatever you do and wherever you are found, you must realise that you can be a Nazarite unto the Lord. With God, there is a chosen place, a chosen nation, a chosen tribe and a chosen people. You can be God's chosen person in your generation.

Prayer/Action
* Consecrate yourself afresh for God’s service.
* Ask the Lord to use you greatly from today.
* Ask the Lord to cleanse your life of every filthiness that can hinder your total surrender to God.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father, in 2018, my sun shall not go down; neither will my moon withdraw itself, in the mighty name of Jesus.   

Enlargement

Saturday 27 January
READ: 2 Kings 6: 1-2    
MORE LESSON: Psalm 118: 5    

Enlargement is becoming more, doing more, going forward and expanding; enlargement is about advancement. For there to be enlargement, one must confront and overcome whatever stops one from going forward. Enlargement therefore is making all-round progress.  A good way of understanding the definition of something is to define its opposite.  To know what enlargement means therefore, we need to understand its opposite, that is, reduction. The opposite of being enlarged is to be reduced, which is to go backward, to suffer subtraction, to lose.

The key to enlargement is to refuse smallness and deal with it. In 2 Kings 6:1-2, ...the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, "See now, the place where we dwell with you is too small for us. Please, let us go to the Jordan, and let every man take a beam from there, and let us make there a place where we may dwell".... (NKJV). If you want to be big in life, you must keep dealing with smallness; rebuke it, reject it, plan against it, work against it. Don't dream small because smallness is a disadvantage. Job 36:16 says, Indeed He would have brought you out of dire distress, Into a broad place where there is no restraint; And what is set on your table would be full of richness (NJKJV). If you ask to partner with God for enlargement, He will bring you out of your present narrow place into a broad place where there is no restraint.

From Psa 66: 12 we know there is a place called the wealthy place, Thou hast caused men to ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water: but thou broughtest us out into a wealthy place. The wealthy place is the place of enlargement. The Living Bible calls it the place of great abundance. Where is the place? Locate where it is and go for it. The place where the sons of the prophets were staying was too small for them. They had a challenge and they faced it.

The first thing anybody, who wants enlargement, should know is that for there to be enlargement, there must be challenges. If you want enlargement in life you should prepare for confrontation and challenges. It is conquering challenges that brings enlargement. Even though the sons of the prophets were spiritual people, they were confronted by a natural problem. The challenge they had was smallness. The way they dealt with it was by taking the initiative to resolve the problem. The prophets were mighty people of prayer but they came up against little things that could mess them up if they did not advance beyond their challenges. This shows that it is not only spiritual steps that need to be taken but also natural steps for there to be enlargement. Today, the place where you are is too small for you, go and get a bigger place, in Jesus’ name.

Prayer/Action
* Ask the Lord to bring you to your wealthy place.
* Declare that you shall not be small in destiny.
* Ask God to bring to your way challenges that will provoke enlargement for you.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father, the Creator and Owner of 2018, grant that mercy, help, advancement and unlimited joy flow to me this year, in the name of Jesus.

Back to Eden II

Friday 26 January
READ: Exodus 24: 1-11 
MORE LESSON: II Corinthians 12:1-4

God gives Eden experience to His loved ones. In today's text God fellowshipped with Moses and the elders of Israel in a unique way, And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink: Exo. 24:10-11. Wow! What beautiful experience, they saw God in his glory, fellowshipped with Him and ate with Him. May you have the Eden experience of seeing God in glory and partaking of the beauty of relating with God. Apostle Paul also had an Eden experience in II Cor. 12 where he was caught up to the third heavens into paradise, He saw and heard heavenly words which confirms again the realities of Eden, God's paradise prepared for His loved ones.

Satan robbed our first father of his Eden experience and even though the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus' death and resurrection has been paid to restore Eden to mankind, many children of God are still being robbed of their Eden experience. Don’t allow Satan to steal your Eden; step out of darkness and receive Jesus into your life. The following are other things to consider.
1. Avoid sin like a plague; sin robs men of their Eden experience. Keep away  from abominations or lies (Rev. 21:27). Also, repent of little foxes that spoil the vine; do not shrug them away saying that they do not matter.
2. Another thing is to consecrate your life to God in holy living.
3. Cultivate the worship lifestyle; God loves worship in spirit and truth. Worshipping Him whole-heartedly can give you the Eden experience while still here on earth.
4. Cultivate humility; remember Satan lost his Eden because of pride. Never allow arrogance towards man or God. Be conscious always that whatever you are or have is from God and is for God so never lift up your heart in pride.
5. Love God passionately. Let His love be your love and His hate be your hate. He delights to take those who love Him into His love garden.

He did it for Moses and the nobles of Israel; He also did it for Paul and He is ready to do it for you now and in eternity. Eden awaits all who follow Jesus and never lose faith to the end. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God: Rev. 2:7. You will get there in Jesus name!         

Prayer/Action
*Lord, thank You for loving me and desiring fellowship with me.
*I renounce all sins that steal the Eden experience from a man.
*I receive Eden as I step into this new day, in Jesus’ name.

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father, I prophesy against the enemies of joy in 2018, nothing they do shall stop my joy, in the mighty name of Jesus.