Monthly Archives: June 2022

THEME: TEACH THEM WHAT TO APPRECIATE

MEMORISE: Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1

READ: 2 Corinthians 3:18
18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

MESSAGE
There is a spiritual law called the Law of Transformation and it simply says that whatever you admire is what you are likely to become. We are designed to transform into whatever we focus our attention upon, as today’s Bible reading clearly states.
Beloved, as you behold the Lord, you are transformed into the same image from glory to glory. Elisha appreciated Elijah and he ended up with a double portion of the latter’s anointing. Joshua appreciated Moses; when Moses was about to leave, he deposited the Spirit of wisdom in him. What your children appreciate from their youth is what they will likely become when grown. Teach them to appreciate people who are relevant in the society, godly people who live by Christian values. They can appreciate musicians, politicians or someone in any profession that they want, but make sure that whoever they appreciate is godly and responsible, with a high level of integrity.

When I was very young, a teacher came to teach in our village. He came with one of his relatives. This boy never wanted to study. We would always hear noise from the teacher’s room as he flogged the boy because he didn’t want to study. One day, the teacher asked him, ‘What do you want to become?” the boy said he wanted to become a wheelbarrow pusher. Apparently, the boy had been admiring a wheelbarrow pusher, so he wanted to become like him.

I also recall vividly another incident when I was still in elementary school. An Anglican Bishop visited our village in a brand-new car. He was dressed in a magnificent robe, and all students in my school, including myself, lined the route he was to pass through, singing as he arrived. When he got down form the car, I noticed his beautiful, shiny shoes, when I got home that day; I told my mother I was going to become a Bishop, Although I am not a Bishop today, I am very close.

You will know what your children appreciate from what they talk about and the songs they sing around the house. Redirect their focus to appreciate godly values and when they are grown, they will not depart from such (Proverbs 22:6).

ACTION POINT
Teach your children to appreciate godly values from their youth.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 12-17

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A ADEBOYE

HYMN 28: WHEN WE WALK WITH THE LORD
When we walk with the Lord
in the light of his word,
what a glory he sheds on our way!
While we do his good will,
he abides with us still,
and with all who will trust and obey.

Refrain:
Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

2 Not a burden we bear,
not a sorrow we share,
but our toil he doth richly repay;
not a grief or a loss,
not a frown or a cross,
but is blest if we trust and obey.

3 But we never can prove
the delights of his love
until all on the altar we lay;
for the favor he shows,
for the joy he bestows,
are for them who will trust and obey.

4 Then in fellowship sweet
we will sit at his feet,
or we’ll walk by his side in the way;
what he says we will do,
where he sends we will go;
never fear, only trust and obey.

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MEMORISE: Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually. 1 Chronicles 16:11

READ: Psalms 9:10
10 And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.

MESSAGE
Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; Ecclesiastes 12:1

The above passage says that the best time for anyone to remember God is when the fellow is young. The best time for your children to seek Him is when they are young. God says in Proverbs 8:17:

I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.

Tell your children to seek God early, before it is too late for them to find Him. Some young people say they will start seeking God after they have amassed material wealth. Let them know that you cannot truly ‘make it’ in life without your Maker. What the world calls ‘making it’ is only a façade. Many people who seem to have ‘made it’ look good on the outside, but inside, they are battling some terrible things. Urge your children to start seeking God now so that they can really be successful in life. Hebrews 11:6 says:

… and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. In other words, if you don’t seek Him diligently, don’t expect any reward. Psalm 34:10 says:

The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.

You have to teach your children that every good thing that they can ever want is in the Lord. Teach your children to seek the Lord and they will never lack any good thing. Teach them how to study the Bible. It is a pity that many people do Bible Study when they get to Church, but at home they rush the devotion. You have to teach them how to dig deep into the Scriptures and get revelations as they read their Bible. Teach them to ask God for whatever they want before they come and ask you. That is how you build in them the zeal to speak to God.

KEY POINT
Teach your children to seek God

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalm 9-11

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A ADEBOYE

HYMN 14: NEARER MY GOD TO THEE
1. Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer to thee! E’en though it be a cross That raiseth me. Still all my song shall be Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer to thee!

2. Though like the wanderer, The sun gone down, Darkness be over me, My rest a stone, Yet in my dreams I’d be Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer to thee!

3. There let the way appear, Steps unto heav’n; All that thou sendest me, In mercy giv’n; Angels to beckon me Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer to thee!

4. Then with my waking thoughts Bright with thy praise, Out of my stony griefs Bethel I’ll raise; So by my woes to be Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer to thee!

5. Or if, on joyful wing Cleaving the sky, Sun, moon, and stars forgot, Upward I fly, Still all my song shall be Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer, my God, to thee, Nearer to thee

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MEMORISE: Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. Proverbs 4:7

READ: Proverbs 4:7 -9
7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

8 Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.

9 She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.

MESSAGE
Psalm 127:3 says that children are the heritage of the Lord; in other words, they belong to the Lord and we are only their caretakers. It is important then that as a caretaker, you take good care of what has been placed in your hands. You must teach your children not to be fools, or else, you would have failed as a parent. Our memory verse today describes wisdom as the ‘principal thing’ and then proceeds to instruct us to obtain it along with understanding. This implies that wisdom must be sought, hence the call to teach our children and wards to seek it.

Teach your children that wisdom is greater than strength (Ecclesiastes 9:16). Since wisdom is the correct application of knowledge, you must teach them to study and acquire knowledge. Don’t let your children spend all day watching television and playing games. They must study; nobody becomes great without studying. It is how hard you have studied that will determine how high you will go. As a teacher at Ondo Boys’ High School in 1963, I was asked to teach 35 periods. There was another teacher in the school who was a graduate but was only teaching 21 periods yet earning 4 times as much as I was. In spite of this, he was still grumbling. I said to him, “Sir, I am teaching 35 periods, you are teaching 21, yet you are receiving four times my salary and you are still complaining”. He drew me close and patted me on the head, then said, “My boy, you don’t understand; I am being paid for what I have already done”.

That was the day I decided that I would go to University, no matter the cost.
It doesn’t matter how a child starts, it doesn’t matter how poor the parents are; if that child studies and works hard, he or she will stand with kings. If you don’t believe me, find a way to read about my background and then compare it to where I am today. I pray for your children: they will not end up as failures in Jesus’ name. you however, have a part to play for that prayer to be answered; you must teach them to study. You may say, “Oh, it doesn’t matter if they study or not, I am already preparing their inheritance; they will never lack anything”. You had better not fool yourself. Only a wise child can manage resources correctly. I pray that your children will not destroy your legacy when you are gone, in Jesus’ name.

ACTION POINT
Remove everything around your children that distract them from studying and create a schedule that will ensure they study more than they play.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 5-8

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A ADEBOYE

HYMN 20: ONWARD CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS
1. Onward, Christian soldiers! Marching as to war, With the cross of Jesus Going on before. Christ, the royal Master, Leads against the foe; Forward into battle, See his banners go!
[Chorus] Onward, Christian soldiers!Marching as to war, With the cross of Jesus Going on before.

2. At the sign of triumph Satan’s host doth flee; On, then, Christian soldiers, On to victory. Hell’s foundations quiver At the shout of praise; Brothers, lift your voices, Loud your anthems raise.

3. Like a mighty army Moves the Church of God; Brothers, we are treading Where the Saints have trod. We are not divided; All one body we: One in hope and doctrine, One in charity.

4. Onward, then, ye people; Join our happy throng. Blend with ours your voices In the triumph song: Glory, laud, and honor Unto Christ, the King. This through countless ages Men and angels sing.

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MEMORISE: For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. 1 Thessalonians 5:2

READ: Matthew 24:43 -51
43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.

44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?

46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.

48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;

49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;

50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,

51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

MESSAGE
Many a time, God would warn man about what was going to happen or about the consequences of his actions. Before Cain took the action that led to him killing his brother, God warned him about it in Genesis 4:6-7:
“And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? And why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? And if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.”

Even though God warned him, Cain did not change his ways He killed his brother and had to face the consequences.

When Jesus Christ was about to be taken away for His disciples to die for the sins of the world, He warned that Peter would deny Him. Peter was boastful rejoicing in his own ability. Peter failed like the Lord warned but thank God that the mercy of God found and restored him. May the mercy of God find you today and restore to you all you have lost, in Jesus’ name,
Today, out of love, God still warns man about the dangers of his own actions. He said in Revelation 22:12:

And behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.

Some people think the Lord Jesus was just telling stories, simply because he has not come yet. 1 Peter 3:9 tells us why He hasn’t come yet:

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

My beloved, when the Bible says that the rapture will take place suddenly, it is not a mere story. The word of God is settled forever (Psalm 119:89). If He says He is coming, He is coming. I hope you will not be amongst those who will be full of regrets when that day comes.

REFLECTION
How are you preparing for rapture?

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalm 1-4

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A ADEBOYE

HYMN 24: THROUGH THE LOVE OF GOD OUR SAVIOUR
1 Through the love of God our Saviour,
all will be well.
Free and changeless is his favour,
all, all is well.
Precious is the blood that healed us,
perfect is the grace that sealed us,
strong the hand stretched forth to shield us,
all must be well.

2 Though we pass through tribulation,
all will be well.
Ours is such a full salvation,
all, all is well.
Happy, still in God confiding,
fruitful, if in Christ abiding,
holy, through the Spirit’s guiding,
all must be well.

3 We expect a bright tomorrow,
all will be well.
Faith can sing through days of sorrow,
‘All, all is well.’
On our Father’s love relying,
Jesus every need supplying,
in our living, in our dying,
all must be well.

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