FAITH CAPSULE: What must be done to serve God’s calling?

Acts 9

Among “must-do” to serve God’s calling is:
To be able to hear and see in the word (light) of God.
Consciously or unconsciously, do you know what is it that is holding you from serving in the calling of God over your life?
Have you given yourself to worldly materials or activities that is taking many down and not able to serve God?
So, what is it that you must do to come out of “worldly tying down agent” to serve God?
TO HEAR AND SEE IN THE WORD (LIGHT) OF GOD
The ability to hear and see in the word of God will set one to serve God’s calling.
Saul of Tarsus (Apostle Paul) was on his way to wreak havoc on the disciples of the Lord in Damascus when he heard and saw in God’s word which set him for what must be done for him to serve God.
Acts 9:1-5 records, “Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he journeyed, he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. [a]It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”
Saul of Tarsus heard and saw in the word of God to gain knowledge and understanding of Jesus that set him to serve in the calling of God upon his life.
Bible records Saul’s response to Jesus: “So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” (Acts 9:6) It was after Saul’s answer that changed his name to Paul; he received instruction from Jesus that made him serve God.
For you, think and act on WHAT MUST BE DONE TO SERVE GOD’S CALLING.
Pray the prayer of wisdom and knowledge as prayed in Colossians 1:9-10, “…ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”
It is not any man’s choice not to serve God, but it is the will of God and His calling for all man to live life for the glory of God and not to live a life of waste!

Prayer for today: Ask God to enable you to live life for His glory.

FAITH CAPSULE: Prayer is a way to stay away from temptation.

Luke 22

Every engagement with Satan is temptation enablement.
It was the day serpent engaged Eve that the temptation to eat of the fruit of the tree in the midst of the garden became a manifestation in her life. Eve ate against God’s command to become disobedient to God and was distanced from God’s presence.
Judas Iscariot engaged Satan. The Bible records, “Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the twelve. So, he went his way and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him to them.  And they were glad and agreed to give him money.  So, he promised and sought the opportunity to betray Him to them in the absence of the multitude.” (Luke 22:3-6) The temptation will come with disobedient. Disobedient to God is the evidence of betraying God. The temptation is the key which opens door to all kinds of sin.
Jesus emphasized that prayer is a way to stay away from temptation.
The Bible records “Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him. When He came to the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” (Luke 22:39-40)
Sleeping in the place of praying will lead to the avenue of temptation. While He was praying the disciples were sleeping. Jesus was praying earnestly but the disciples were sleeping with sorrow. Jesus approached them and said, “Why do you sleep? Rise and pray lest you enter into temptation.” (Luke 22:46) Jesus must have seen what was about to happen when He came to speak to the disciples about their sleeping in the place of being awake.
At Jesus time with His disciples, “…a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him. 48 But Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”
Judas, the one Satan entered sold out his Lord and savior cheaply.  Consequence
Is there any way you have been selling Jesus out consciously or unconsciously?
At the time Jesus woke them up from sleeping they have entered the situation that caused all of them to be scattered, to save their life.
At the time Jesus woke them up from sleeping instead of praying Peter was set to strike instead of him to allow Jesus to speak to the situation.  Peter struck by cutting off the servant of the high priest’s ear. Jesus responded by speaking to the situation.
With temptation in the place of prayer, man will end up denying and selling Jesus out.
Engage unceasing prayer to disallow temptation.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace to be strengthened on prayer altar.

FAITH CAPSULE: Walk obediently to be near to God.

Genesis 5

God is always near to all man while man is far from God.
What does it mean to be close to God or far from God?
To be walking in the line of God’s word is obedient to God, to become near to God by walking with God or walking before God.
DISOBEDIENT DENIES MAN NOT TO BE NEAR TO GOD
One in disobedient to the word of God will not be near to God that is never far from man (He is never sleeping but see all at all time)
One in disobedient will hid from God’s presence.
The sin of Adam and Eve made them be far from the near of God as stated in Genesis 3:6-10, “So, when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings. And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, and I hid myself.”
Caring God created all man for His glory to keep all man near to Him but the sin the evidence of not knowing God keeps all far from God.
Just like Adam and Eve, sin will expose a man naked, which is a state of shame that should not have a place in the life of a man claiming to be walking in line with God’s word.
For a man to be far and not near to God is the result of being afraid in this world which is the evidence of not fearing God that is a sin before God.
We are to be dressed by the word of God and not be naked by putting on the world that we live.
Are you living obediently or disobediently before God?
Obediently, give self to God’s word to be walking in His presence.
Enoch was near to God because he walked with God. Genesis 5:21-24, ” Enoch lived sixty-five years and begot Methuselah. After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years and had sons and daughters. So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.”
It is important to be walking in God’s word to be near to Him.
The presence of God is His glory. Romans 3:23 buttressed, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” With sin, all will be short of His presence, not being in His presence that is always near.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace to be near to God all the days of your life.

FAITH CAPSULE: God’s time will answer without fail.

Genesis 37

Time belongs to God while the clock belongs to man.
Time of God is controllable only by God.
There is no man in the position to move God’s time forward or backward.
Any man is possible to move the clock forward or backward.
In life, there is a process in God’s time to locate any man for His assignment.
When it is God’s time, He will locate or dislocate any man as it pleases Him regardless of age or challenges that seem impossible for any man to answer to God’s calling.
When it was God’s time for calling Abraham into the divine assignment, Abraham could not refuse but answered to God’s calling. The Bible records, “…Abram departed as the LORD had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. And Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.” (Genesis 12:4) At the retirement age, seventy-five years was God’s time to call Abraham for his assignment to God.
Who would have thought of a journey of such magnitude for an aged man like Abraham?
The time of God’s calling does not come the same way for all.
The time of Moses’ calling by God was after his forty years in the palace of Pharaoh of Egypt. Moses had no choice to move when the time of challenging issue took charge over his life.
Under heaven, there is no time that is outside of God’s intervention.
The challenge of Moses was his accidental killing of an Egyptian that forced against one of his Hebrew brethren. Moses could not hide his doing, Pharaoh heard about Moses’ deed. The Bible records, “When Pharaoh heard of this matter, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh and dwelt in the land of Midian; and he sat down by a well.” (Exodus 2:15) At age forty Moses’ situation forced him to run unknowingly in the direction of God’s plan for his life.
God’s time will answer without fail.
Joseph the dreamer, at his young age of seventeen unknowingly entered a time of journey of his placement to bring his dream to manifestation. Joseph did not plan to enter into the journey of his life when he went to check on his brother as directed by his father. “Then he said to him, “Please go and see if it is well with your brothers and well with the flocks, and bring back word to me.” So he sent him out of the Valley of Hebron, and he went to Shechem. Now a certain man found him, and there he was, wandering in the field. And the man asked him, saying, “What are you seeking?” (Genesis 37:14-15)
The time of wandering into entering the pit, Joseph began a journey to the center of his divine assignment.
Regardless of your age or where you are, do not struggle with God’s time of visitation; God is on top of it all.
Could it be that it is the time of your journey to the center of your calling?

Prayer for today: Ask God for wisdom, knowledge, and understanding in the time of your calling.