Tuesday, 6 August 2013
RCCG Open Heavens Devotional Tuesday 6th August 2013
SOW TOWARDS YOUR NEXT LEVEL
By Pastor E. A. Adeboye
MEMORISE: Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters, that send forth
thither the feet of the ox and the ass. Isaiah 32 : 20
BIBLE READING: Isaiah 32 : 15 – 20
Everyone has a next level. As successful as you
may consider yourself to be, there is a level you have not attained, a height
you have not climbed, a feat that has not been achieved. No matter how anointed
you are, there is a level of anointing you have not reached. The earlier you
realize and accept this, the better for you. Many people like Moses saw their
next level but could not enter in. May you never be a victim of seeing but not possessing your
blessing in Jesus name.
To enter your next level, you must be prepared
to sacrifice your Isaac. The next level comes by sacrifice. How much are you
willing to give to enter into your next level? Similarly, you can enter
into your next level by sowing. In Genesis 26 : 2 -14, we see how
Isaac entered into his next level through sowing the seed he had at a
period of famine. There are seeds and there are fruits.
Seeds are meant to be sown while fruits are meant to be eaten. Seeds are
for the future while fruits are for today. If you are wise like Isaac, you will
never convert the seed that should give you a tomorrow into a fruit that should
sustain you for the moment. Isaac virtually starved when he sowed what others
should have eaten. He suffered a while but when the yield came, he became
greater than the nation which ate their seeds. Those who sow their seeds will always be
greater than those who eat their seeds. In The Redeemed Christian
Church of God, there is a track record of meaningful sowing. It is the sowing
of the past that has brought us to our present location. In Port Harcourt, a
woman sowed three of her houses and landed property. Sometimes, some people
would empty their pockets for the work of the Lord. I have had to sow my car
too. What are you
willing to give to move to your next level? If what you are prepared
to sow is far from what God expects you to sow, your seed will be unable to
deliver your next level.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalm 100 -102
KEY POINT: No matter how high you have gone, there is still a height you
have not reached.
Monday, 5 August 2013
RCCG Open Heavens Devotional Monday 5th August 2013
LOSING YOUR BEARING?
By Pastor E. A. Adeboye
MEMORISE: Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your
own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you,
except ye be reprobates? 2 Corinthians 13 : 5
“Either make the
tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit
corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.”
Matthew 12 : 23
Any one in
autthority that lacks the fear of God is of great danger to the populace. Going
by the above scripture, we have an obligation to such persons – be they in the
church or in the secular world – to lead them to Christ. There are some of us
who have those in authority as friends, relations, spouses, etc. Ensure you
pray and lead them to Christ because, as you make a tree good, the fruit will
also become good.
You may not believe
this but i discovered a long time ago that it is possible to become a General Overseer or District Overseer without
even knowing Christ. I once preached in a church on what it means to be
born-again, after which I made an altar call. The pastor approached the altar
followed by everyone else. Surprised, I said, “Sir, this is not an altar call
for transfer of the anointing or power”. He replied, “Now that you have
explained what it is to be born – again, I have realized the need to return to
the altar”. Thank God for people who are honest who are ready to amend their
ways when they realize they have missed it. Even today, many ministers will
need to pay a visit to the Cross of Calvary, because this is an era of holiness. How can you be holy if you are not born-again? Some
people gave their lives to Christ but presently, they have withdrawn their
commitment to Him. Are you still saved? To lie is
the easiest sin for some ministers and their wives but they have forgotten that
just one lie is enough to drown a soul in eternal hell. One lie a couple told in Acts 5, led to their untimely death. If you
are a bonafide minister of God, your mouth will feel very heavy if you want to
tell a little lie. But if you say it with nothing pricking you, it shows your
heart is already hardening. Run to the Cross and begin again. Some people think
they are still running the race but they have lost their bearing.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalm 97 – 99
PRAYER POINT: Father, in any way I have lost my bearing, in your mercy,
bring me back to the right path.
RCCG Open Heavens Devotional Sunday 4th August 2013 A Joyous Ending By Pastor E. A. Adeboye
RCCG Open Heavens Devotional Sundayday 4th August 2013
A JOYOUS ENDING
By Pastor E. A. Adeboye
MEMORISE: For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not
be cut off. Proverbs 23 : 18
BIBLE READIND: Luke 7 :11 – 15
Every part of the
human body is important and is given to us for some reason. The mouth particularly
is given to us to protect against any contrary condition we may be
experiencing. If you fail to cry out when you should, you may be prolonging the
negative situation you are in. I was out for a prayer walk one night and did
not really care if anybody else was around. I had a very crucial issue to
settle with God so I laid prostrate on the road. Then one fellow came to me and
called Daddy. In my heart I wondered, ‘What is his business about this?’ Who is
daddy when there is trouble? According to
Luke 11 : 9 -10, we are instructed to ask, seek and knock but the duration
for making the request is not stated; in other words, we are to continue to
ask, seek and knock until we receive our desire – till our joy is full (John 16 : 24). How are you asking today?
Moreover, another
lesson from the Shunammite woman of 2
King 4 : 18 – 26 is that all is well that ends well. When you go through
the scriptures, you will see several people who encountered problems but at the
end, they had a pleasant, glorious ending. How a given situation ends is more
crucial. In Mark 2 : 1 – 12, we read
of a man who was paralyzed. He was borne by four people because the situation
had made him heavier, but at last he walked home by himself. In Mark 5 : 1 – 20, we see how a notorious mad man became an
evangelist. Similarly, in Luke 7 : 11 –
15, we read of a woman who was happily married and had a son. At some
point, she lost her husband then her son, and was embarking on a journey to
bury him when she encountered Jesus. At the end, her trip into lasting sorrow
became a trip into permanent joy and comfort when the Lord raised up her son
from the dead. Are you
in a particular sorrowful situations? The Lord will step in and your end shall
be glorious. Fear not, the problem you think will kill you. The problem will be
terminated so that your joy might be full. You shall end in joy.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalm 94 – 96
PRAYER POINT: Father, irrespective of what I am going through today, let my
end be glorious.
Saturday, 3 August 2013
RCCG Open Heavens Devotional Thursday 3rd August 2013 Pay for Spiritual Service By Pastor E. A. Adeboye
RCCG Open Heavens Devotional Thursday 3rd August 2013
PAYING FOR SPIRITUAL SERVICE
By Pastor E. A. Adeboye
MEMORISE: Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out
devils: freely ye have received, freely give.
Matthew 10 : 8
BIBLE READING: 1 Corinthians 2 : 12 – 13
One reason many
people are failing God in ministry and in their secular jobs is because they
are copying methods rather than following the Lord. Another reason is that they
are following after the wrong things. If you pursue the wrong things or focus
on what is not needful, it will definitely affect your results. When Naaman was
leaving with all the goodies he came with, Gehazi vowed to go after him. What are you running after? God sees the
hearts of men. Naaman came to the man of God hoping to pay for his healing. The man of God was
sensitive to the spirit of God and so refused to take a gift from him. There
are some servants of God who have never refused a gift before. In fact, if
something is not offered to them after God has used them to be a blessing, they
take offence and begin to complain. Such people are following the path of
Gehazi.
Romans 3 : 24 says we are justified freely by His grace. 1 Corinthians 2 : 12 -13 and Romans 8 : 23 say that God has freely
given us the things of the Kingdom. Did you pay for your salvation,
sanctification or baptism in the Holy Spirit? Did you pay for the fruit and
gifts of the Holy Spirit that makes the miraculous possible in your life? Matthew 10 : 8 says,
“Heal the sick,
cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received,
freely give.”
Today, the greed
of some ministers of the Gospel makes them to compel or cajole recipients of
blessings from God’s grace on their life to pay in cash or in kind. In other
words, the concepts of free reception
and free delivery is fast becoming obsolete. Some minister will say, ‘ I laid hands on you and the cancer in your body
disappeared. You know how much it cost bto treat an incurable disease like
cancer. If it is half of what you would have spent on treatment, go and bring
it; after all, it is not easy to acquire the anointing’. Has the
anointing suddenly gone on sale? The Lord frowns seriously at this! If
recipient of miracles on their own decide to show appreciation, that is fine;
but it is very wrong for them to be compelled or cajoled to ‘pay’for what they
received. If they pay, they may never see the need to turn their lives over to
God.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 Thessalonians 1 – 3
ACTION POINT: If you sell
the gift of God which should be freely given, you will be made to pay back on
the day you have nothing at hand
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