As the Father has Sent Me

STRENGTH FOR MY DAYS 

A Daily Devotional by Bishop David

As the Father has Sent Me

Thursday, 31 October

 

Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Luke 10:19

SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY: John 17:1-22 These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: 2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. 3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. 4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. 5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. 6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. 7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. 8 For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. 9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. 10 And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them. 11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. 12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled. 13 And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 15 I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. 18 As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. 19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. 20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; 21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. 22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:

 

MORE LESSON: Mark 16:14-15 Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen. 15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

 

Jesus’ resurrection is an opportunity for the Church to manifest glory. It's wrong to sit and mourn Jesus' death. What will you do with the post resurrection power? The agenda of God after resurrection is for the Church to preach the Gospel, heal the sick, cast out demons and ensure that the enemy is made the footstool of the Body of Christ. This is why the Bible says, in Psalms 110:1, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. Here God is referring to Jesus; God's desire is to see that the enemy is beneath the feet of even the least in the Kingdom. Heavens rejoiced after the disciples began to manifest the power of God in them.

There is power in you and Heaven is waiting for you to do something with it. The post resurrection power is for the manifestation of the sons of God. Until we do, it we are just gathering in church and fellowships for nothing. You don't call your pastor when the enemy is striking; you first deal with it before calling him. Jesus has already resurrected and the next person to resurrect now is you. Resurrect from your cold Christian life (Mark 16:15–18). You are activated for signs and wonders. The grace upon your life should not be under-utilized.

All that the Father endowed Jesus with to enable Him fulfil His assignment has been given to us too. This is why Jesus confidently said that, as the Father has sent Him, so He sent the disciples. Also after He resurrected, just before He ascended to heaven, he said, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen: Matt. 28:18-20.

God does not send a man for a job He has not equipped him for. This therefore means that for Jesus to make such commands, He had already given all that was needed. He understood that they needed power to carry out the assignment and that there would definitely be challenges so He asked them to wait until they had received power. When that happened on the day of Pentecost, the disciples stepped out and the world is yet to recover from all that they did. You and I are products of their exploits because if they messed it up, there would have been nothing like Christianity today.

That same power has been passed to us and we must use it to bring the world to the obedience of Christ. We must not allow the grace of God in our lives to be of no effect. I encourage you to labour more and put to use the power that the death of Jesus has made available to us.

 

Prayer/Action

* Pray in the Holy Ghost for at least ten minutes. 

* Command the grace and glory of your life to begin to manifest. 

* Terminate every thing that is stopping your light from shining and bringing glory to God.

 

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: Hallelujah to the Lamb of God who sits upon the throne without limits. October is done gloriously.

Zealous for Christ

  STRENGTH FOR MY DAYS 

A Daily Devotional by Bishop David

Zealous for Christ

Wednesday, 30 October

 

As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. Revelation 3:19

SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY: 1 Kings 19:10-14 And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away. 11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: 12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. 13 And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah? 14 And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.

 

MORE LESSON: Revelation 3:19-21 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. 21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

 

Zeal is the tireless devotion to a person, cause or ideal. It comes with an ardent determination to see to the furtherance of what you are zealous about. Zeal is an expression of your deepest hunger and greatest pursuit. Aheart searching question today is, 'What are you zealous in?' A lot of people serve God but are not really zealous in their pursuit of God. Many are zealous in the pursuit of wealth, fame, knowledge, certificate and even ministerial success but few are passionate for Jesus Christ Himself. What you ardently seek is what you love the most. Elijah said in 1Kings 19:10, And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away. Elijah was a man of zeal for the Lord; no wonder he did unusual exploits. There are levels of impact that are reserved only for men of zeal.

Zeal is not merely a human affair, even God has zeal. The Bible severally talks about ...the zeal of the LORD of hosts.... Isaiah 37: 32. God fights battles with zeal. Zeal is one of the attributes of God. The Church of Christ has known about the merciful, faithful and gracious God. It is high time we discovered the zealous God. 2 Corinthians 7:11 says, For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter. Zeal approves a man before God. It was zeal that approved Phinehas (Numbers 25: 1 – 13). If zeal approves, then lack of zeal disapproves. Can you see why so many people have not been approved by the Lord? It is not enough that you sing in the choir, preach the Word, give to God or even witness to sinners. It is only enough when you do them zealously. Prayerfully check your zeal gauge. Are you zealous enough for the Lord?

Zeal is doing everything you can to make things right. According to Revelation 3:19, zealousness is a requirement from God for those who will make Heaven. Today, pray for the zeal of the Lord to consume you once again.

 

Prayer/Action

* Ask for mercy in every area of your life, where you have lost zeal for the things of God. 

* Ask the Holy Spirit to reignite your zeal for God more than ever before. 

* Come against everything that kills the zeal for the things of God.

 

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: Hallelujah, my days of limitations are over now. Thank You Jesus.

God, the Owner II

 STRENGTH FOR MY DAYS 

A Daily Devotional by Bishop David

God, the Owner II

Tuesday, 29 October

 

I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all. Ecclesiastes 9:11

SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY: Ecclesiastes 9:11 I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.

 

MORE LESSON: Genesis 21:1 And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken.

 

If you have been told that your season  and time has passed, that is not correct information because it is God who owns the seasons and times that can decide whether one’s season has passed or not.

1. For instance, Abraham and Sarah had passed their child bearing age. Men thought it was over for them but they forgot that He who owned them also owned the times and seasons of their life. When He decided to visit them, Sarah conceived and bore a son just as she had been promised (Genesis 21:1).

God owns both the situation you expect to happen and the time. So when the time seems to have passed, He can take time from the back to meet up with the situation in front or He can bring back the situation to meet the time where you are because both are in His control and He can use them to your advantage. Your battle is about time and you don't need to fight that battle because God owns times and seasons.

So do not listen to the enemy's deceit that your time has passed. That is a lie from the bottomless pit. How do you believe the calendar more than the owner of the calendar? You must choose to look beyond your situation and believe God who owns times and seasons. God can reverse the time or fast forward it all in your favour.

2. The Sarafoenician woman is another good example. She came pleading with Jesus to heal her daughter and at a point, His disciples told Him to just say something to her so she could go. Jesus said it is not good to give the children's bread to the dog, she said the woman responded that it is true while the children are eating, the dogs do not compete with the children on the table, but they can eat the crumbs that fall beneath the table.

What Jesus was saying in essence was that He came to die so that He could redeem the seed of Abraham and all those who would later come to believe, to whom belongs the healing. But the woman said that healing belongs to You (Jesus). What You can do post Calvary, You can also do now. Jesus explained, I have never seen such faith and instantly her miracle was delivered to her because she believed that Jesus owned the times and the seasons. Today, times and seasons will change in your favour, in Jesus’ name amen.

 

Prayer/Action

* Thank God because your life and times are in His hands. 

* Declare that times and seasons are not against you but they are in your favour. 

* Pray that all things shall work for your good because you love God and I expect His is return.

 

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: Hallelujah it's The Master's Convention again. A new season, here we come. Let the shout of hallelujah now rend the heavens, in Jesus' mighty name.

God, the Owner I

STRENGTH FOR MY DAYS 

A Daily Devotional by Bishop David

God, the Owner I

Monday, 28 October

 

Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Luke 12:32

SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY: Psalm 24:1 The earth is the LORD'S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

 

MORE LESSON: Luke 12:32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

 

God owns everything in the world. It is not strange to people that God owns everything created because Psalm 24:1 says, The earth is the LORD'S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. Notice that the second part of that scripture which talks of the fullness has to do with the fact that God does not just own the things we see but also those things we cannot see; signs, wonders, days, years and seasons. He can turn anything to the direction He wants to accomplish His purpose on the earth, and in the life of anyone He chooses at any time.

The reason why some people constantly knock at the gate of Heaven is because there is a conflict between the times and seasons of their life. Certain things you expected to happen at certain times/seasons of your life did not happen It looks like the seasons and years are working contrary to your expectation. That is called waiting. You wait because things do not work or do not happen at the time you expect them to happen. In fact, for some, they have been told that their season has passed. But I tell you that the God who saved you, redeemed you and forgave you is your Father, the Shepherd and the Bishop of your soul. Men might say that your time and season has passed but your time is not in their hand. God your Father owns and controls your seasons to your advantage.

God has you in one hand and days and seasons in the other hand. This is good news because when you discover that the one who loves you has what you are looking for, it is game over because you are sure that it will eventually be given to you. This is what Jesus meant when He said that our heavenly Father already knows that we are in need of these things so we need to focus our attention on seeking His kingdom while He focuses His attention on attending to the issues that concern us. It is good news because He who owns the sheep also owns the grass, so there is nothing to be afraid of. It's like the popular African saying that you have both the knife and the yam in your hands, so there's no reason to be afraid of hunger. I have good news for you today, your Maker and the Owner of your soul is also the Owner of the seasons and times of your life. So there is nothing to be afraid of and He will make it good, in the name of Jesus Christ.

 

Prayer/Action

* Give God thanks because he has the season and times of your life in hands. 

* Decree that your life will play out according to the way God has planned it. 

* Ask the owner of life and time to satisfy you with your heart desires.

 

TODAY’S PROPHETIC PRAYER: To the great God of JAWOM, our Shepherd and Helper, thank You for the year 2024. Oh Father, thank You is not enough. Glory be unto Your name Lord Jesus.