Monthly Archives: April 2017

Memorise: Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; Acts 3:19
Read: Jeremiah 3:11-15
11 And the Lord said unto me, The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah.
12 Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep anger for ever.
13 Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the Lord.
14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:
15 And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.
Bible in one year: Numbers 10-11, Jeremiah 17:14-27

1. Backsliding is such a terrible condition that any child of God who backslides must quickly seek for restoration.
2. The danger with backsliding is that a backslider may perish with his or her enemies like Samson did, or lose all he or she had gained in God like Judas Iscariot (Judges 16:30, Acts 1:16-20).
3. The good news is that God has provided a remedy for backsliding.
4. In today’s Bible reading, we see the loving God calling and inviting backsliding Israel back to Himself. This is a pointer to the fact that God wants to restore all backsliders.
5. “Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every tree and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the Lord. Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:” Jeremiah 3:13-14
6. The above verses of scripture contain the cure for backsliding.
7. Restoration for the backslider starts with an acknowledgment of sins and a contrite return to God. In other words, the cure to backsliding lies in genuine repentance.
8. Repentance is a complete turnaround from one’s sins with a determination never to return to those sins any more.
9. This was what Samson failed to do throughout his twenty years of being judge over Israel. To make matters worse, he always ascribed his victory and achievement to his strength. Hear what he said after one of his victories in Judges 15:16 “….With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps, with the jaw of an ass have I slain a thousand men.”
10. There is no record of him giving glory to God even once. When he should have prayed for mercy, he prayed a wrong prayer, asking God to strengthen him one more time, so that he could avenge his eyes! Due to the mercy of God, and because the gifts and calling of God are without repentance, God still granted him his request, and he died with his enemies (Romans 11:29, Judges 16:28-30).
11. In Acts 3:19, we see some of the great benefits of repentance. These included forgiveness, the blotting out of sins and the experience of a time of refreshing from the presence of the Lord.
12. Beloved, are you in a backslidden state? I encourage you to return to God through the Lord Jesus Christ today.
13. Read 1st John 2:1-2 for a better understanding of your heritage in Christ. As you do these, the joy of salvation and the victory over sin will be restored to you.

There is always grace for anyone who genuinely repent and go to God for a second chance. The only solution to backsliding is genuine repentance from all sins and iniquities. The wages of sin is death and destruction is always the end of every wickedness. The intention of God for you  is not for destruction. Imagine if David refused to repent  after  the adultery with Bathsheba according to 1 Samuel 11 and ask God for purification of heart. Do you find yourself committing a particular sin, why not ask God for change of heart just like David. Consider the promise of God for a contaminated heart in Ezekiel 11:19-20. Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them,[a] and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.

Action Point
Pray for restoration if you are a backslider. If by His grace you are still standing, pray that you will not backslide, and also pray for all backsliders in the Body of Christ that you know.
HYMN
I have decided to follow Jesus
I have decided to follow Jesus
I have decided to follow Jesus
No turning back, No turning back
Though none go with me still I will follow
Though none go with me still I will follow
Though none go with me still I will follow
No turning back, No turning back
My cross I’ll carry, till i see Jesus
My cross I’ll carry, till i see Jesus
My cross I’ll carry, till i see Jesus
No turning back, no turning back.
 
The world behind me, the Cross before me
The world behind me, the Cross before me
The world behind me, the Cross before me
No turning back, No turning back

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20

Memorise: For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia. 2nd Timothy 4:10
Read: Judges 14:5-10
5 Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.
6 And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father or his mother what he had done.
7 And he went down, and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well.
8 And after a time he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcase of the lion: and, behold, there was a swarm of bees and honey in the carcase of the lion.
9 And he took thereof in his hands, and went on eating, and came to his father and mother, and he gave them, and they did eat: but he told not them that he had taken the honey out of the carcase of the lion.
10 So his father went down unto the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.
Bible in one year: Numbers 8-9, Jeremiah 16:14-17:13

1. Yesterday, we established that backsliding is a gradual process that remains hidden in the heart and only begins to manifest after it had gotten out of hand.
2. In today’s memory verse, we discover one factor that brings backsliding: the love of the world.
3. 1st John 2:15-16 says, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world,”
4. The Bible passage reveals the character of the love of this present world, by which the heart of Demas, a companion of Paul, was stolen away from the straight and narrow way (2nd Timothy 4:10).
5. How far have you been drawn away from the narrow path which you have been treading on for so long?
6. Is the relativism philosophy of this present world doing great damage to the faith which you once had? How far have you been drawn away by the pleasurable things of life? My prayer for you is that the fire of the first love you had for Christ will be reignited, and that you will relate with God and the things of God like when you first believed in Him in Jesus’ Name.
7. Taking a closer look at the life of Samson as a case study of the backslider-in-heart, one lesson we can learn from today’s Bible reading is that the backslider-in-heart can still be preaching, ministering in songs, doing all kinds of work of the ministry, and even performing miracles, while in the process of backsliding.
8. Although Samson was going down into the abomination, when a lion roared against him, he responded with the same ability of the spirit he always had. Judges 14:6 says: “And the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he world have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father of his mother what he had done.”
9. As if marrying a Philistine was not enough, on his next trip to Timnath, he went to admire the relics of his conquest, the carcass of a lion he had killed. Behold, the devil had set up a honeycomb right there in the carcass of the dead lion to ensnare him, and Samson fell for it; even though he knew that a Nazirite must not touch the dead body of an animal (Numbers 6:2-8).
10. Samson’s stomach and taste continued to lead him on his downward slide towards destruction, just as they did to Esau (Hebrews 12:16-17).
11. My prayer for you is that your appetite for the things for the world will not destroy you in Jesus’ Name.

Loving the world ends in destruction. It changes the route of a child of God from the right path to that of death. The devil through the world has a lot to entice and deceive saints with. However, if we ignore these wiles and stay in the Lord’s will and way we will surely triumph against all odds. Jesus faced a similar situation after forty days and forty nights of fasting but the indwelling presence of God brought Him through victoriously. As long as we remain in His love we won’t love the world or the things of the world. We will not take any step that will make us backslide in Jesus name. More grace to our father in the Lord Pastor E.A Adeboye in Jesus name.

Prayer Point
Father, don’t let what I love destroy me, and don’t let me love what would destroy me.
HYMN
I have decided to follow Jesus
I have decided to follow Jesus
I have decided to follow Jesus
No turning back, No turning back
Though none go with me still I will follow
Though none go with me still I will follow
Though none go with me still I will follow
No turning back, No turning back
My cross I’ll carry, till i see Jesus
My cross I’ll carry, till i see Jesus
My cross I’ll carry, till i see Jesus
No turning back, no turning back.
 
The world behind me, the Cross before me
The world behind me, the Cross before me
The world behind me, the Cross before me
No turning back, No turning back

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20

Memorise: The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself. Proverbs 14:14
Read: Judges 14:1-3
1 And Samson went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines.
2 And he came up, and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines: now therefore get her for me to wife.
3 Then his father and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.
Bible in one year: Numbers 7, Jeremiah 16:1-13

1. Backsliding is not an event but a gradual process that occurs over a period of time until it gets to a noticeable stage.
2. At that stage, people will begin to say an individual has backslidden, but what they fail to realise is that it did not start at that point.
3. Backsliding begins in the heart.
4. When a believer becomes filled with his or her own ways, that believer has begun to backslide.
5. That person would always be right in his or her own sight, and others would be wrong. Such a person would no longer take advice from anybody, becoming a loner.
6. ln today’s Bible reading, we see the case of Samson, an anointed Nazirite to the Lord, who began to backslide right from his heart.
7. The way today’s Bible reading begins is significant: “And Samson went down…”. When a person begins to go down, may the Lord have mercy on him or her. As he went down, he saw an abomination that enticed him: a Philistine woman. He came to his father and mother to tell them of his intention to marry the Philistine woman. His parents counselled him against this abominable desire, but regardless of their warning, Samson said “Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.”
8. When a child of God begins to nurse the idea of getting engaged to an unbeliever, no doubt, he or she has started backsliding in the heart.
9. An unbeliever should not be an attractive option for a genuine child of God.
10. A female child of God should find it repugnant for a smoker or drunkard to become her husband; after all, such a person will get intimate with her after wedlock with smoky lips or a mouth saturated with alcohol.
11. A Christian brother should also see it as degrading to be married to a lady operating under the influence of the spirit of Jezebel — knowing full well how Jezebel destroyed her husband (Ephesians 2:2, 1 Kings 21 :25).
12. You are influenced by the environment you live in and the people you are intimate with.
13. An unbelieving woman or man will act as a weight around your neck, dragging you down to the pit of hell.
14. The different abominable things going on in the world are enough to deter a genuine child of God from marrying a person who is not under the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
15. Such a person is not restrained from doing whatever the devil suggests to his or her heart and does not share the same standard of the word of God as a moral compass for life.
16. Today, we hear of wives sleeping with drivers and domestic staff, and we also hear of husbands sleeping with housemaids and their wife’s sisters -things that are abominable in the sight of God. Do you know that an unbeliever might not flnd these things abominable?
17. lt is a terrible thing to be associated with an “uncircumcised Philistine” in these end times. Beware of backsliding!

All believers who strive to make it to heaven must not joke with their heart and do all in their capacity to secure their heart. The truth remains that the Devil is not interested in your body but after ones soul. Many go to His presence with very nice and appealing appearance but deep inside of them they have hidden evil agenda. Judas Iscariot was with Christ for long and at the same time backsliding gradually until his cup of iniquities was full and hung himself. That is the reason why the Bible says “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭4:23‬. The dimension the spirit of God took in today’s devotional is amazing. This is because many people go into marriage with an unbeliever and they comfortably make a family with such unbeliever yet they see nothing wrong with it. In School of disciples, we learnt that the kingdom of darkness is united and they don’t do anything contrary to their common goal(to steal, kill and destroy). A child of the devil will therefore do nothing different from what he or she has been commissioned to do which is to destroy the victim. This was depicted in the story of Samson and his wife. We shall never fall into the devil’s pit in Jesus name. As we study the Open Heavens devotional daily we are blessed. God bless the author Pastor E.A Adeboye in Jesus name.

Prayer Point
Father, completely destroy the works of the devil in my life and in Your Church.
HYMN
God give us Christian homes!
Homes where the Bible is loved and taught,
Homes where the Master’s will is sought,
Homes crowned with beauty Your love has wrought;
God give us Christian homes;
God give us Christian homes!
God give us Christian homes!
Homes where the father is true and strong,
Homes that are free from the blight of wrong,
Homes that are joyous with love and song;
God give us Christian homes;
God give us Christian homes!
God give us Christian homes!
Homes where the mother, in caring quest,
Strives to show others Your way is best,
Homes where the Lord is an honored guest;
God give us Christian homes;
God give us Christian homes!
God give us Christian homes!
Homes where the children are led to know
Christ in His beauty who loves them so,
Homes where the altar flres burn and glow;
God give us Christian homes;
God give us Christian homes!

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20

Memorise: Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7
Read: 1st Samuel 15:17-22
17 And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the Lord anointed thee king over Israel?
18 And the Lord sent thee on a journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed.
19 Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the Lord, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the Lord?
20 And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and have gone the way which the Lord sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.
21 But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in Gilgal.
22 And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king.
Bible in one year: Numbers 5-6, Jeremiah 15:10-21

1. I have always admonished believers never to pray that God should humble them; this is an ignorant prayer.
2. The truth is that God has given everyone the capacity to choose whatever he or she wants to do, and He will not interfere with our choices.
3. For this reason, every man is responsible for his or her actions. Why is this so? This is because man, unlike other creatures, was created as an agent of free will. The Bible in Deuteronomy 30:19 says: “I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:”
4. The above passage of Scripture explains God’s attitude to man’s fall in the Garden of Eden. Although He had instructed Adam and Eve not to eat the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, He did not try to stop them when they did eat it, even though He is omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent.
5. His righteous nature would not allow Him to hold back the free will He had already given to them. However, they lived to bear the consequences of their choice to disobey God.
6. In our Bible reading today, King Saul momentarily forgot the low estate he occupied before he was made the king of Israel.
7. His forgetfulness caused him to think that he could flout the instructions given to him by the King of kings. He decided to listen to his human counsellors, and he began to rationalise the instructions God gave him.
8. King Saul therefore became swollen-headed, and Prophet Samuel who anointed him as king became “old school” and “old fashioned” in his eyes.
9. To him, there should be no ‘waste’; after all why destroy valuable fatted cows? Moreover, great kings would begin to pay tribute to him for sparing their lives.
10. Contrast this attitude against his humble demeanour before he became king.
11. He himself had once said in 1st Samuel 9:21: “…Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? And my family the least of all families of the tribe of Benjamin? Wherefore then speakest thou so to me? Remembering this, Prophet Samuel in 1st Samuel 15:17 said: “….When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel?”
12. May the Lord deliver his children from pride in Jesus’ Name.
13. Our approach to humility should be to heed the counsel of submission in today’s memory verse; the reason being that if we do not humble ourselves voluntarily and God has to do it, one could end up like King Saul, whom the Lord rejected from being king over His people (1st Samuel 15:26). May that not be your portion in Jesus’ Name.

Obeying God’s word is a great virtue every child of God must possess. Our love for Him is a driving force for this obedience. 1 Peter 5:5-6 says “Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.” Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time. There must be a move to show we desire to do the will of God and we must indeed go ahead and try. This willingness makes God help in our weakness. When we are able to attain the obedience level then we function in the things of God with ease. Obeying God is far better than facing the consequence of disobedience or praying ignorantly which when answered can get the person praying ignorantly into big trouble I not death. May God help us in our weakness in Jesus name. May God continually strengthen Pastor E.A Adeboye in Jesus name.

Prayer Point
Father, I submit myself to Your Lordship. I will seek what You want, and what You hate, I will hate. Help me to stay truth to this commandment in Jesus Name.
HYMN
On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,
the emblem of suffering and shame;
and I love that old cross where the dearest and best
for a world of lost sinners was slain.
Refrain:
So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross,
till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
and exchange it some day for a crown.
O that old rugged cross, so despised by the world,
has a wondrous attraction for me;
for the dear Lamb of God left his glory above
to bear it to dark Calvary. Refrain
In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,
a wondrous beauty I see,
for ’twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died,
to pardon and sanctify me. Refrain
To the old rugged cross I will ever be true;
its shame and reproach gladly bear;
then he’ll call me some day to my home far away,
where his glory forever I’ll share. Refrain

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20

Memorise: For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 1 Timothy 6:10
Read: 1 Timothy 6:6-11
6 But godliness with contentment is great gain.
7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.
Bible in one year: Numbers 4, Jeremiah 15:1-9

1. A crafty and complex form of idolatry in our world today, which has been around for a long while, and yet seems to go unnoticed by most people, is the reverence and premium place given to the god of money (Mammon) in the hearts of mankind.
2. Our Lord Jesus Christ was very clear when He stated what the first and greatest commandment was in Matthew 22:36: “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.”
3. When our love, which should be given to God exclusively, is diverted to money, we err from the faith and expose ourselves to dissatisfaction and many sorrows. The Bible in Ecclesiastes 5:10 says, “He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.”
4. I am sometimes puzzled as to why people run after vanity.
5. In some countries of the world, government offlcials embezzle billions from their sovereign wealth and cart their loot away to foreign lands. Some of these officials have become even “richer” than their country by this act. One wonders what they would do with all this stolen money. Nothing reasonable for sure!
6. For such people, money has become their god, and so they worship it to the extent that the more they acquire, the more difficult it becomes for them to spend.
7. Find out from some so-called rich people, they find it difficult to spend their millions. They eat like paupers because money is their god.
8. In today’s Bible reading, the Holy Spirit offers us a way out of Mammon’s bondage. He said: “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” 1 Timothy 6:6-8
9. Beloved and fellow pilgrims, our stay here on earth is too short for us to run after Mammon.
10. Let us follow the Master intimately, because He is the only One that would always stand by us, even after we close our eyes in death.
11. Mammon would change servants immediately the fellow who worships him breathes his or her last breath.
12. Let us be wise and follow after godliness.

In God there is peace, joy and abundance. But in mammon is trouble, sadness deceit. I like us to meditate on Psalm 16:3-11 and then we will get a additional knowledge of the difference between being God’s and being Mammon’s. Psalms 16:3‭-‬11 says “But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight. Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another god: their drink offerings of blood will I not offer, nor take up their names into my lips. The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage. I will bless the Lord , who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons. I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” May we never serve mammon in life in Jesus name. We will function in the fullness of our heritage in Christ Jesus and serve God till the end of time in Jesus name. God bless Pastor E.A Adeboye for yet another deep insight into the word of God.

Prayer Point
Father, please fill my heart with godliness and contentment. Grant me the grace to love You more than anything else in this world.
HYMN
1. On a hill far away
Stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame;
And I love that old cross where the dearest and best
For a world of lost sinners was slain.
Refrain:
So I’II cherish the old rugged cross,
Till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.
2. O that old rugged cross, so despised by the world,
Has a wondrous attraction for me;
For the dear Lamb of God left his glory above
To bear it to dark Calvary.
[Refrain]
3. In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,
A wondrous beauty I see,
For ’twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died,
To pardon and sanctify me.
[Refrain]
4. To that old rugged cross I will ever be true,
Its shame and reproach gladly bear;
Then he’ll call me some day to my home far away,
Where his glory forever I’ll share.
[Refrain]

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20

Memorise: For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 1 Timothy 6:10
Read: 1 Timothy 6:6-11
6 But godliness with contentment is great gain.
7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.
Bible in one year: Numbers 4, Jeremiah 15:1-9

1. A crafty and complex form of idolatry in our world today, which has been around for a long while, and yet seems to go unnoticed by most people, is the reverence and premium place given to the god of money (Mammon) in the hearts of mankind.
2. Our Lord Jesus Christ was very clear when He stated what the first and greatest commandment was in Matthew 22:36: “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.”
3. When our love, which should be given to God exclusively, is diverted to money, we err from the faith and expose ourselves to dissatisfaction and many sorrows. The Bible in Ecclesiastes 5:10 says, “He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.”
4. I am sometimes puzzled as to why people run after vanity.
5. In some countries of the world, government offlcials embezzle billions from their sovereign wealth and cart their loot away to foreign lands. Some of these officials have become even “richer” than their country by this act. One wonders what they would do with all this stolen money. Nothing reasonable for sure!
6. For such people, money has become their god, and so they worship it to the extent that the more they acquire, the more difficult it becomes for them to spend.
7. Find out from some so-called rich people, they find it difficult to spend their millions. They eat like paupers because money is their god.
8. In today’s Bible reading, the Holy Spirit offers us a way out of Mammon’s bondage. He said: “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” 1 Timothy 6:6-8
9. Beloved and fellow pilgrims, our stay here on earth is too short for us to run after Mammon.
10. Let us follow the Master intimately, because He is the only One that would always stand by us, even after we close our eyes in death.
11. Mammon would change servants immediately the fellow who worships him breathes his or her last breath.
12. Let us be wise and follow after godliness.

In God there is peace, joy and abundance. But in mammon is trouble, sadness deceit. I like us to meditate on Psalm 16:3-11 and then we will get a additional knowledge of the difference between being God’s and being Mammon’s. Psalms 16:3‭-‬11 says “But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight. Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another god: their drink offerings of blood will I not offer, nor take up their names into my lips. The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot. The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage. I will bless the Lord , who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons. I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” May we never serve mammon in life in Jesus name. We will function in the fullness of our heritage in Christ Jesus and serve God till the end of time in Jesus name. God bless Pastor E.A Adeboye for yet another deep insight into the word of God.

Prayer Point
Father, please fill my heart with godliness and contentment. Grant me the grace to love You more than anything else in this world.
HYMN
1. On a hill far away
Stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame;
And I love that old cross where the dearest and best
For a world of lost sinners was slain.
Refrain:
So I’II cherish the old rugged cross,
Till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.
2. O that old rugged cross, so despised by the world,
Has a wondrous attraction for me;
For the dear Lamb of God left his glory above
To bear it to dark Calvary.
[Refrain]
3. In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,
A wondrous beauty I see,
For ’twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died,
To pardon and sanctify me.
[Refrain]
4. To that old rugged cross I will ever be true,
Its shame and reproach gladly bear;
Then he’ll call me some day to my home far away,
Where his glory forever I’ll share.
[Refrain]

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Memorise: And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Ephesians 4:30
Read: Acts 5:1-6
1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession,
2 And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.
5 And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things.
6 And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him out, and buried him.
Bible in one year: Numbers 3, Jeremiah 14:13-22

1 One of the attributes of the Holy Spirit that confirms to us that He is a person is that He can be grieved.
2. Indeed, the Holy Spirit can be abused to the point of being grieved.
3. At this point, He can decide to show His Almightiness like the other two personalities of the Godhead.
4. This is the reason why Apostle Paul admonished us not to grieve the Holy Spirit of God (Ephesians 4:30).
5. There are many reasons why it is dangerous to grieve the Holy Spirit. One of such reasons is located in today’s memory verse.
6. We are sealed unto the day of redemption by the precious Holy Spirit in our lives. This seal serves as a covering that shields us from the activities of Satan and his cohorts.
7. If you make your Covering annoyed to the extent that He deserts you, in that case you will be left without a shield protecting you against evil spirits.
8. This is very dangerous because we cannot pass through this world of evil as pilgrims without the assistance of the Holy Spirit.
9. Another reason why it is dangerous to grieve the Holy Spirit is that His wrath could be very devastating.
10. The story in today’s Bible text confirms that no man can withstand His wrath. Ananias and Sapphira his wife grieved the Holy Spirit and they were punished by death. What did they do to grieve the Holy Spirit? They lied to Him.
11. Many so-called believers would regard this as a “simple lie”, but it was enough to grieve the Holy Spirit, and He struck them dead.
12. Cooperating with a liar can also grieve the Holy Spirit as in the case of Sapphira, Ananias’ wife.
13. It is dangerous to keep company with liars because the same punishment meted out to the original liar would be received by the accomplice.
14. In times past, Christians used to be persecuted in various establishments because they would not cooperate with liars who would get to work at 10 a.m. but register 7 a.m. as their resumption time. Today, some Christians are doing worse, even in Church offlces.
15. Rebelling against the Lordship of the Holy Spirit over your life is another way through which He can be grieved.
16. When you get to a point where you refuse to take instructions from the voice of the Holy Spirit within you, then you have rebelled against His Lordship. The Bible in Isaiah 63:10 says, “But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.”
17. Beloved, let us heed the admonition of Paul and desist from grieving the Holy Spirit by all means.

The Holyspirit is our friend. He is our comforter and teacher. We should never grieve our friend, comforter and teacher by any means. It is very abnormal to pay good with evil even in real life scenerio and in the same vein when we ignore the Holyspirit, blaspheme or lie against or to the Holyspirit we grieve him and it is not just bad but dangerous because when the relationship breaks the friendship and union is lost. Also the edge gets broken hence devil gets a loophole to penetrate through.
The key to living the right way and in God’s will is the indepth study of the word of God and the help of the Holyspirit. This is why we must do everything to maintain our relationship with the Holy Spirit and not grieve him. God will help us in Jesus name. We are grateful to God for blessing us with Pastor E.A Adeboye. May His grace never depart from him in Jesus name.

Prayer Point
Father, please pardon me in any way I have grieved Your Holy Spirit, and give me the grace never to do so again until I see you in glory.
HYMN
O spread the tidings ’round,
Wherever man is found,
Wherever human hearts
And human woes abound.
Let every Christian tongue
Proclaim the joyful sound:
The Comforter has come!
Refrain:
The Comforter has come!
The Comforter has come!
The Holy Ghost from heav’n,
The Father’s promise giv’n,
O spread the tidings ’round,
Wherever man is found:
The Comforter has come!
The long, long night is past;
The morning breaks at last;
And hushed the dreadful wail
And fury of the blast,
As o’er the golden hills
The day advances fast!
The Comforter has come!
[Refrain]
Lo, the great King of kings,
With healing in His wings,
To every captive soul
A full deliv’rance brings;
And thro’ the vacant cells
The song of triumph rings;
The Comforter has come!
[Refrain]
O boundless love divine!
How shall this tongue of mine
To wond’ring mortals tell
The matchless grace divine –
That I, a child of hell,
Should in His image shine?
The Comforter has come!

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Memorise: There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty. Proverbs 11:24
Read: Luke 15:11-14
11 And he said, A certain man had two sons:
12 And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living.
13 And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.
14 And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want.
Bible in one year: Numbers 1-2, Jeremiah 14:1-12

1. Many people do not know that the act of giving has principles that must be followed in order to get rewarded for it by God.
2. Due to their ignorance, such people have become discouraged from giving because they had given in times past without getting the results which they rightfully expected.
3. The truth of the matter is: giving has principles, and unless you follow these principles, you will have no result for your giving.
4. For example, if you sow your corn or wheat on the sea, you will definitely get nothing. Therefore, we must learn the principles of giving in order to have the desired results for our giving.
5. God will never owe any man; He gave us His word of assurance on this in Hebrews 6:10: “For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have administered to the saints, and do minister.”
6. However, you must know the type of ground you sow your seed into. For example, it is an exercise in futility to sow your seed into a church ministry where the more money comes in, the more women the leaders acquire to his pleasure.
7. Also, when you give to a ministry which you know diverts your seeds into private estates and into taking care of the body instead of using it for winning souls, do not expect any reward from God.
8. Apart from being selective of the type of causes you give to, you must also learn to give intelligently.
9. In today’s Bible reading, the prodigal son took all that he had, left the environment of accountability and spent everything recklessly. The result of his wild lifestyle is glaring in Luke 15:14: “And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want.”
10. It is an established truth that giving brings blessings upon the giver (Proverbs 11:24a). The Lord Jesus Christ Himself established this in His teachings (Luke 6:38).
11. However, there is another truth we also need to pay close attention to in Proverbs 11:24b, which says: “…and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty”
12. In other words, though we are not expected to “spend all”, we must not fall into the error of conserving more than is necessary. This is the word of God.
13. Those who live a lifestyle of spending their all always become a nuisance to the body of Christ through excessive borrowing. Learn from the story of the seven years of plenty and strategy of conservation given by Joseph against the succeeding seven years of famine (Genesis 41:33-36).
14. Also, learn from the ants how to manage your resources prudently (Proverbs 6:6-8).
15. May God give you wisdom along this line, so that you can spend and give wisely.  

There are important points mentioned in our devotional for today that we should take seriously and that is what I will like us to reflect on. “There are principles that must be followed when we give in order to get rewarded for it by God.” “Giving brings blessings upon the giver (Proverbs 11:24a).” We must know the type of ground you sow your seed into. Be selective of the type of causes you give to and also learn to give intelligently. Let u study the bible references give in the last paragraph meditatively and I pray as we do the Holy Spirit will minister more truth to us as regards our giving. May God continually increase Pastor E.A Adeboye in knowledge, grace and strength so that more truth of God’s will can be published for the body of Christ in Jesus name.

Prayer Point
Father, give me wisdom to manage the resources You have entrusted to my hands.
HYMN
There shall be showers of blessing:
This is the promise of love;
There shall be seasons refreshing,
Sent from the Savior above.
Refrain:
Showers of blessing,
Showers of blessing we need:
Mercy-drops round us are falling,
But for the showers we plead.
There shall be showers of blessing,
Precious reviving again;
Over the hills and the valleys,
Sound of abundance of rain.
There shall be showers of blessing;
Send them upon us, O Lord;
Grant to us now a refreshing,
Come, and now honor Thy Word.
There shall be showers of blessing:
Oh, that today they might fall,
Now as to God we’re confessing,
Now as on Jesus we call!

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Memorise: Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: Matthew 3:8
Read: Acts 3:13-19
13 The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go.
14 But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;
15 And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.
16 And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
17 And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.
18 But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.
19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.
Bible in one year: Leviticus 26-27, Jeremiah 13:15-27

1. Since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, hypocrisy has been a character trait of mankind.
2. For this reason, God has continuously reached out to man with message of living a changed life.
3. The Mosaic Law was all about making the Israelites live a life that was different from that of all the other nations around them, a life of change which conforms to God’s expectations.
4. At different points in time, when they erred from the Mosaic Law, God still sent prophets to them with the message of change.
5. One of such prophets was Ezekiel. Speaking through him, the Lord demanded that His people repent and change from their hypocritical ways (Ezekiel 14:6). The Lord also spoke through Prophet Ezekiel about the change of life He would bring about by the regeneration of the human spirit through Christ (Ezekiel 36:25-27).
6. When this prophecy was to be fulfilled, the Lord sent John the Baptist to preach the baptism of repentance. However, John discovered that some people were just coming religiously for baptism without any intention of changing their ways, and he had this to say to them: “Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.” Matthew 3:8-9
7. The apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ also had the message of change forming the central theme of the gospel they preached.
8. In spite of the demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit with signs and wonders, the apostles did not mince words in declaring heaven’s demand for a change of life to the people of their day. Peter in Acts 3:19 boldly declared thus: “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;”
9. It is sad, however, that many modern-day preachers have deleted the message of change from their sermons because they would not want to be “offensive” to modern minds. What such preachers fail to realise is that the message of change is the only hope for the world.
10. The message of change brings repentance, and repentance brings times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord.
11. I therefore beseech you to effect the necessary changes befitting of a Christian pilgrim in your life today. Remember, tomorrow may be too late!

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭12:1-2‬ Considering the statement of Apostle Paul, there is a way we have to live of life that is acceptable and perfect will of God. It’s unfortunate that message of the truth is scarce in the body of Christ today. You cannot be cold and be warm at the same time, as Christ spake to the Church in Revelation 3:16 “So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” Brethren the consequences of playing God and pretending to have changed can be unbearable, therefore let’s wake up, be a genuine changed person in Christ as see your God uplifting you. When you hate evil and focus on God and His Kingdom you get divine promotion “Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.” Hebrews‬ ‭1:9‬. “And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.” ‭‭1 Kings‬ ‭18:21‬ ‭God bless Pastor E.A Adeboye for this spirit lifting devotional. ‭

Prayer Point
Father, grant me the grace to change my crooked ways, and give me the strength of character to walk with You on the straight and narrow path all the days of my life.
HYMN
I have decided to follow Jesus
I have decided to follow Jesus
I have decided to follow Jesus
No turning back, No turning back
Though none go with me still I will follow
Though none go with me still I will follow
Though none go with me still I will follow
No turning back, No turning back
My cross I’ll carry, till i see Jesus
My cross I’ll carry, till i see Jesus
My cross I’ll carry, till i see Jesus
No turning back, no turning back.
 
The world behind me, the Cross before me
The world behind me, the Cross before me
The world behind me, the Cross before me
No turning back, No turning back

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Memorise: Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. Psalm 127:3
Read: Exodus 2:1-9
1 And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of Levi.
2 And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months.
3 And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink.
4 And his sister stood afar off, to wit what would be done to him.
5 And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river’s side; and when she saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it.
6 And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews’ children.
7 Then said his sister to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and call to thee a nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee?
8 And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Go. And the maid went and called the child’s mother.
9 And Pharaoh’s daughter said unto her, Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the women took the child, and nursed it.
Bible in one year: Leviticus 25, Jeremiah 13:1-14

1. Many people who are blessed with the gift of children are not conscious of the fact that children are the heritage of the Lord, meaning that God is their rightful owner, and they are gifts from Him.
2. This is why an adage from my village says “Rich people cannot find children to buy in the market.” What money cannot buy can only be obtained from the Almighty God.
3. What then should be the attitude of parents to these priceless gifts? The answer can be seen in the story of the birth, adoption and upbringing of Moses, the child who later become the mouthpiece of the Almighty God. Moses was born at a time when Pharaoh had commanded that every newborn male child should be immediately killed. His mother tried to hide him for three months, but when he could no longer be hidden, she decided to drop him off by the bank of River Nile. Pharaoh’s daughter picked him up from there and adopted him as her own. By God’s providence, the princess gave Moses to a nurse who happened to be his mother. Hear what the princess said to her: “Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the woman took the child, and nursed it.” Exodus 2:9b
4. There are many lessons we can learn from this story.
5. By adoption, Moses was the child of Pharaoh’s daughter, but she gave him over to a nurse to nurture him for her. This mirrors God’s divine arrangement, whereby He, being the owner of children, hands them over to parents to nurture them for Him.
6. In other words, just as the princess told Moses’ mother, “nurse this child for me”, God is also saying to parents, “nurse this child for Me.” The princess also told Moses’ mother that she would pay her wages for a job well done.
7. God is equally telling parents that if they properly nurture children for Him and not for themselves, He will reward them well.
8. It is unfortunate that many parents are nursing God’s heritage for themselves or the devil; hence, they are getting their wages from the flesh or from the devil.
9. This is the reason why many children have turned out to be a curse to their parents breaking their hearts because the parents nursed the children for themselves and not for the Lord.
10. On the other hand, godly parents who train their children to fear the Lord are paid the wages of peace of mind from God at old age.
11. The children of such parents prosper under the grace of Jesus, which they have been exposed to from infancy, and they are battles axes in the hands of their original Owner, the Almighty God.

Most parents are actually not aware that parenthood or parenting is more sensitive than they think. The physical, financial and emotional aspect is what many focus on leaving out the spiritual part. Some even think instilling good moral is same as instilling the fear and love of God in their children. The existence of some western law has left some parent residing in the Western countries with no option than the ungodly way of grooming their children. Even where such law doesn’t exist negligence has taken over some parent. This is a call to order, repentance and correction for parents and guardians. I pray that the host of heaven will join every parent willing to bring up or bring back their children the way of the Lord and it will become a reality in Jesus name. God be praised for blessing us with Pastor E.A Adeboye who feeds us with quality and deep truth of the word of the Lord.

Prayer Point
Father, give me wisdom to nurse the children You have divinely placed in my care, and may I not miss my reward for nursing them according to Your counsel.
HYMN
1 God give us Christian homes! 
Homes where the Bible is loved and taught, 
Homes where the Master’s will is sought, 
Homes crowned with beauty Your love has wrought; 
God give us Christian homes; 
God give us Christian homes! 
2 God give us Christian homes! 
Homes where the father is true and strong, 
Homes that are free from the blight of wrong, 
Homes that are joyous with love and song; 
God give us Christian homes; 
God give us Christian homes! 
3 God give us Christian homes! 
Homes where the mother, in caring quest, 
Strives to show others Your way is best, 
Homes where the Lord is an honored guest; 
God give us Christian homes; 
God give us Christian homes! 
4 God give us Christian homes! 
Homes where the children are led to know 
Christ in His beauty who loves them so, 
Homes where the altar fires burn and glow; 
God give us Christian homes; 
God give us Christian homes!

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