Combating Satanic Wiles

Friday 27 May
READ: Eph.6:10-16
MORE LESSON: II Thess.2:9-13

Wiles are tricks, gimmicks, deceits and strategies that satan uses to trap people unawares, especially Christians who should know better. God, in this verse, did not say we should ignore these wiles but that to overcome we must be armed against them. Why do we need to be armoured against wiles? It must mean that wiles have effect. Carelessness can make wiles effective against even the strongest man; by wiles satan used Delilah to finish Samson.
One of the wiles that satan uses to overcome Christians is the power of past glories of satan wrapped in ignorance of the truth by Christians, Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part in the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death; that is the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage: Heb.2:14-15. A careful look at this scripture reveals the wiles that satan uses to cheat and punish men, the lie that he has power. Satan HAD the power of death; it was in the past! That power has been taken from him by the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus passed through death, destroyed satan's power through His death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead. So in your life satan's wiles must come to an end because Jesus has won the victory and satan is a liar.
Refusing to walk in this truth and appropriate it leads to damnation, That they all might be damned who believed not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness: II Thess.2:12. Therefore to overcome satan's lies, a child of God must be fully armed with the truth of the imputed righteousness of God for all men who have received Jesus as Lord and Saviour, For he hath made him to be sin for us , who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him: II Cor.5:21.They must also be armed with the truth of the defeat of satan on the cross, Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; and having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it....: Col.2:14-15. The believer's authority and power over satan and his forces is another truth to be armed with, 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.
These truths along with several others that abound in the Scripture are what a believer must be armed with to overcome satanic wiles in this world. These must be read, meditated upon and even memorised with strong confessions in warfare in order to stay free of satan's wiles. The price that Jesus paid will not be nullified in your life, in Jesus’ name.

Prayer/Action
* I command all satanic wiles to be abolished in my life henceforth, in Jesus’ name.
* The truth set me free today; I shall no longer be bound.
* Sing a song of victory and confess the victory of Jesus over your life all through today.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father, let my profiting begin to appear to all men from today, in the name of Jesus!

Look to Abraham 2

Thursday 26 May
READ: Gen. 17:1-10
MORE LESSON: Rom. 4:1-10; 18-22

Today, we continue on the instruction of Jehovah God to us all, Look unto Abraham. There are more areas of obedience to God which Abraham complied with that are worthy of emulation. He raised altars to Jehovah as he sojourned in the promised land (Gen.15: 9-17). Abraham obeyed God in ensuring a peaceful marriage between him and Sarah (Gen.16: 1-6), Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it: Eph.5:25. He shouldn't have practised the custom of the land in child bearing, but rather should have encouraged Sarah in her discouragement.
Abraham obeyed God in establishing covenant tokens as instructed by God in circumcision of all males in his household (Gen.17:11-27). There are various covenant tokens in Christianity also. If you will walk with Jehovah and have a part in Him, you must obey these tokens as spelt out in the Bible, the manual for the Christian walk. Establish memorials and permanent flow of blessings by following covenant tokens of fellowship, offerings, tithes and vows. Abraham obeyed God in practising hospitality (Gen.18:1-9). This act hastened the fulfilment of God's promise of a child to Abraham. The Christian who is not hospitable contradicts the pattern of love given by God, Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality: Rom.12:13.
He also obeyed God in the ministry of praying for others, including his enemies and his family (Gen.18:23-33). Even God had a testimony concerning Abraham's training of his household in righteousness, For I know him that he will command his children and his household after him, that they shall keep the way of the Lord to do justice and judgment that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him: Gen. 18:19.
Abraham's intercession contributed to the deliverance of Lot and his family from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham obeyed God in the ultimate test of sacrificing his son Isaac to God, but God did not allow the death of Isaac, He gave a ram instead. Abraham gave his greatest love, after God, back to Him, And he said, lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou anything unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me: Gen.22:12.
Abraham obeyed God in ensuring that his child married an Israelite, not Canaanite, Be not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness and what communion hath light with darkness?: II Cor.6:14. Be a friend of God by continual obedience to Him and He will make you continue in greatness even to all your generations as he did with Abraham.

Prayer/Action
* Lord, help me walk with You that I might be a blessing to my generation like father Abraham.
* Make a list of areas you will obey the Lord this year and diligently adhere to them by His grace.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
I decree that before this month runs to an end, the power of answered prayer will locate me, in the name of Jesus.

Look to Abraham 1

Wednesday 25 May
READ: Isa. 51:1-2
MORE LESSON: Gen. 12:1-10

There is a clear instruction in today's reading that calls all seekers of God to attention: Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him: Isa.51:2. Abraham is one unique man whose name is a reference point in most religions. Across generations his life before God is a pivotal story in the history of the Jews and Christians. All worshippers of God in these religions are told to follow Abraham’s pattern in serving God. What was the peculiarity of father Abraham that Jehovah God could ask men of all generations to emulate him? Some people have suggested that the reason why Abraham lives on though dead is because he is the father of faith, the friend of God and the centre of the covenant that God instituted with both the physical and spiritual Israelites. I quite agree with all these but the real reason why Abraham's life is still speaking, though he has been dead for thousands of years now is his OBEDIENCE. This characteristic of Abraham is what God asks us to look unto in this great patriarch's life. Abraham had his faults as every man born of a woman has but he uniquely obeyed God.
Genesis chapters 11-25 reveal Abraham's life of obedience to God. We will trace some together so that each one of us will really be able to “look unto Abraham”. He obeyed God when he was told to leave his roots and origin in his father's house to follow God (Gen.12: 1-5). He obeyed God and preferred Lot to himself though he was older and brought Lot his nephew out of Ur. He asked Lot to choose before him the portion of the land he preferred, Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves: Phil.2:3.
Abraham obeyed God in paying tithes (Gen.14:20). No wonder he was a prosperous man. Hear the testimony of Abraham's servant about him: And the Lord hath blessed my master greatly, and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and men servants, and maid servants, and camels and asses: Gen. 24:35. Do you want to be great? then, follow Abraham's pattern and tithe all that God gives you as income; and you will enter into material prosperity like father Abraham. He obeyed God by believing God's promises to him even in contrary circumstances, And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb. He staggered not at the promises of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith giving glory to God: Rom.4:19-20. Will you be considered righteous in God's sight? Then believe the promises of God no matter what you are passing through now.

Prayer/Action
* I receive help from God to emulate Abraham the father of faith.
* Lord, give me strength to live a life of obedience to You.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
Today, I remove my name and family from any demonic calendar and programme, in the name of Jesus.

The Testimony of a Quality Life 2

Tuesday 24 May
READ: Prov. 9:14-18
MORE LESSON: Matt. 5:14-16

As a child of God, you should aim for success in life. Success and prosperity are part of the package of salvation. Have you noticed that when a man is a failure and he has nothing to show for his profession of faith, nobody wants to accept the gospel from him? The gospel means the good news, when there is nothing good in the life of a person sharing it, nobody believes the gospel in his mouth. This is the reason why a child of God must make the choice of an excellent and outstanding life and performance wherever he finds himself. To be outstanding is to be of such high quality that you are first among equals. Being outstanding in life is God's desire for every believer, in your finance, career, family and academics; you testify for the Lord when you excel.
A believer that is always sinning, cheating or fighting in the neighbourhood doesn't have a basis to testify to others to accept the life he carries. So also the believer that is begging around, failing in exams, tattered and battered will realise that the people will not respect the gospel in his mouth. However when your life is desirable and your situation admirable, when you show up and you declare the gospel of Jesus, the people are compelled to give you attention because of the quality of your life. You must know that success for a child of God should not be about self-gratification or worldly pursuits but a means of making a statement for the kingdom of God.
In the text for today, we see a man that had wisdom to save a city but his wisdom was despised because he was poor. It is possible to have the message of wisdom and salvation to offer to the people of the world but the poverty in the life of the believer makes the message to be despised. Therefore you must know that your life is a testimony which validates the claims of the gospel. This is why you must pay attention to your life to make sure you live a quality life of holiness and righteousness in this perverse generation. This also includes taking due diligence to succeed in your job, finance and career. It involves aiming to be outstanding in all ramifications so that when you take Jesus to the market place of the world, the testimony of what He has done in your life is very evident.

Prayer/Action
* Ask that the goodness of Jesus will be evident in your life.
* Pray that the dealings of God in your life and family will make you a living testimony of Jesus’ faithfulness.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
No matter what the devil does, I shall not end my year in shame, in the mighty name of Jesus.

The Testimony of a Quality Life 1

Monday 23 May
READ: Matt. 5:14-16
MORE LESSON: Dan. 1:20

A product is desirable on the basis of having good quality. When the quality of a product is high, it is confidently marketed. The moment people discover that the quality of a product is good, they desire to buy. Did you know that fervently marketing a product with bad quality can be counter-productive? If you convince a person to buy the product and after buying it, he discovers that it is a bad product, you have lost that customer. So ensuring quality should take preeminence over marketing. When people see the quality of what you have, they will ask for it in large quantity. As a believer you must know that your life is a product. If you have accepted Jesus as Lord and you want to evangelise the people of the world, the evidence of Jesus in your own life is what attests to the quality of accepting Jesus in a life. That's the power of the market place. The world is a market place of evangelism. Every sect, religion and group is trying to win people to their beliefs. It is the quality of what you have come to offer and the quality of your life that will eventually differentiate you from the rest.
You must trust God and work hard to live a quality life in every aspect of your life because when you take Jesus to the market place, the only thing that will make your claims of Jesus to sell is the quality you demonstrate in wisdom, power, healing, miracles, wealth, success and excellence. The people of the world want solution, so when you offer solution, they listen to you.
This is the reason why a believer must not be satisfied with mediocrity. As a believer you should not pursue success and excellence for the mere fact of self-gratification like the people of the world. But you must go for it because the testimony of such a life is what gives you a voice for evangelising people and nations. A saved life is a high quality life. Your prayer makes your life not to be a mockery of redemption and make salvation undesirable to the people of the world. A Christian still languishing in sin, addiction and bad habit doesn't make the Christian life desirable to unbelievers. A child of God buffeted by poverty and begging around doesn't make Jesus marketable to the world. A child of God sickly and always sorrowful makes it difficult for the world to believe in the quality of what they are offered in salvation.
Today, everything that makes mockery of salvation in your life is destroyed, in Jesus’ name. Pray and aspire for a quality life and thereby become a good ambassador of Christ. You are the light and salt of the world, don't stand less.

Prayer/Action
* Lord, let Your beauty reflect in me that I may market You well.
* I shall not be a mockery of redemption, in Jesus’ name.
* I destroy everything that reduces my quality as a Christian, in Jesus’ name.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
Today, I receive the power and spirit of focus, courage and determination in the name of Jesus.

Shout of Praise

Sunday 22 May
READ: Isa. 12:6
MORE LESSON: Psa. 98:6-9

Some years ago as a student in Kwara State School of Basic Studies, I was facing a particular situation that made me cry for sometime. Then I decided to go to an open field to shout praises to God for 30 minutes. Friend, that problem did not last for two days before I got the victory. Next time there is no one around to share your problem with, shout praises to God. I once asked our father, Daddy E.A. Adeboye this question, “Why shout hallelujah?” He replied that satan hates the shout of hallelujah. Give your enemy what he hates. When you shout praises because negative things are happening around you, satan is defeated.
One of my excitements in praise is the secret of it that I understand. There are a few things I know about praise and many things it has done in my life. If there is a multipurpose tablet in the Christian world, that tablet is praise. It reverses the enemy's activities. I have not seen anything that is needful for God that praise is not useful for. Praise is useful for all times. Praise is a singular multi-faceted tool that God has given us. The dimension of praise I want to share with you today is SHOUT. The Bible admonished in the Old Testament that the priests be clothed with righteousness and the saints shout for joy. Praise can be manifested in form of shouting. Isa.12: 6 says, Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee. In this scripture, there is a command to shout. Why? Because of joy. Shout is an expression that goes with joy. In this scripture, it is so clear that one of the ways we can express the presence of God in our midst is to shout. God's appearances in most occasions in the Old Testament were heralded with shout. When God comes into a situation, there is a shout. This means you can do a shout of praise to invite God into a situation.
Why do we have a shout when God is involved in a matter? This is because shout is an expression or a reaction that God is present in a matter and the presence of God brings greatness into a matter. David said: Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee: Isa. 12:6. This is because something extraordinary has come to the people of God. You can either use shout to invite the presence of God into a matter or to celebrate God in a situation. These are the two things you can do with shout. As you shout praises to God, the Lord will arise and destroy your enemies, in Jesus' name.

Prayer/Action
* Shout praises and drive the spirit of affliction out of your body.
* Loudly command the spirit of fear out of your destiny.
* Declare a holy coordinated shout against disappointment and barrenness of all kinds.
* Declare that your shout of praise will manifest God in your situation.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
Every noise and voice of confusion and depression in my mind and spirit stop now, in the name of Jesus.

Forgive and Rise Again

Saturday 21 May
READ: Matt. 26:31-35, 69-75
MORE LESSON: Micah 7: 8

Peter was an influential figure in Jesus' team. When Jesus predicted His suffering and death, Peter boasted and vowed that he was going to die with Jesus but all it took was a little damsel to question him; he swore and denied ever knowing Jesus. He fulfilled what Jesus had prophesied: Before the cock crows thou shalt deny me thrice . . .and he went out and wept bitterly: Matt 26: 75. He did what needed to be done: he wept bitterly in repentance. He told God, “I thought I couldn't deny You but I did, I'm sorry.'' After crying, Peter forgave himself and continued with God; and later in the book of Acts we saw the same Peter became a preacher.
Peter was not the only one who missed it during the trial and suffering of Jesus. Another person was Judas Iscariot who led people to arrest Jesus. He sold Jesus for thirty shekels of silver; he allowed satan to get him inside. A theologian suggested that may be Judas thought that after betraying Jesus into the hands of the enemies, Jesus would be too powerful to be arrested and then he would have made away with the money without any guilty conscience. This still shows that Judas was being ruled by the love of money. However, he was disappointed when Jesus allowed Himself to be taken. Destiny had already determined for the Son of man to go as it is written concerning Him but woe to that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed (Matt 26: 24). After Jesus was crucified Judas also repented: ...I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood....: Matt 27: 4. He refused to spend the money. He went to buy a plot of land: …and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out: Acts 1: 18. He committed suicide.
It was Peter that stood up and selected a replacement for Judas (Acts 1:15-20). Was Peter not also guilty? Yes he was, but he accepted forgiveness; and rose again. What about Judas; would God have forgiven him? Yes. But he didn't accept the forgiveness; rather he killed himself! The difference between the two of them is that one forgave himself while the other one refused to forgive himself. When a man refuses to forgive himself in destiny, he is digging a grave for himself. Learn to forgive yourself so that you will not go the way of Judas. It's time to forgive and rise again. If you can just forgive the mistakes of yesterday and face tomorrow, there is hope for you. If your destiny is cut down, don't just sit down weeping; don't commit suicide. Begin the process of healing by first forgiving yourself like Peter did. That's what the Word of the Lord says-forgive.

Prayer/Action
* Ask God to help you break the siege of unforgiveness over your life and others.
* Command destruction upon every weapon of guilt intended to destroy your destiny.
* Ask that the blood of Jesus will cleanse you of every wrong doing and give you grace to go on.

PROPHETIC PRAYER
Father, in the name of Jesus, I shall not fail but succeed in all things I do this year