FAITH CAPSULE: The word of God in the bible is the manual to navigate through the journey of life.

Psalm 34

Life is a journey that is full of ups and down. God is good to perform His word for man that trust and hope in His word. It is written in Jeremiah 29:11-13, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.  Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.  And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” In the journey of life, God did not plan evil to derail His future plan for man. In journey of life, challenges shall be in place but the grace of God is more than available and enough to make us to grow over challenges of the journey of life. The word of God in Psalm 34:19 is an assurance to persevere the challenges of journey knowing that, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all.” God always honors His word and He will not fail to perform it.
In the case of the Israelites’ journey of life through the wilderness, the Lord led them through the safest route. It was a route that avoided war with the forces of the enemy. The Lord’s route for them was to prevent them from becoming victim at the hands of enemy. God’s route was to keep them from a route that takes them from going back but forward. Is your present route taking you backward instead of forward because of the challenges ahead? Above all, God directed Israelites through a route where there would have been no reason for the Israelites from going back into the captivity of Egypt. Exodus 13:17-18 recorded, “Then it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt. So God led the people around by way of the wilderness of the Red Sea. And the children of Israel went up in orderly ranks out of the land of Egypt.” In God’s deliverance of Israelites from entering a war route, they turned and entered to complaint and rebellious route. Disobedience against the promise of God’s leadership took charge of their journey. The Israelites failed to acknowledge the leadership of God.
Know that challenges will come to make up but not able to break you. Today, encourage yourself in the Lord; let it be clear to you that God will get you to where He is taking you if you do not step out of His command.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to follow through His route not by your own route.

FAITH CAPSULE: Giving thanks should not be based on feelings but on a regular basis.

Psalm 107

Regardless of past and present challenges, to see a new day is a great grace not a right. For a new day, turn to God and give thanks. Giving thanks to God is crucial; giving thanks to God should not be a casual way of appreciating God. Psalm 107:1 stated, “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Psalm 92:1, “It is good to give thanks to the Lord, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High” The book of Revelation 11:17 also stated, “We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty, The One who is and who was and who is to come, Because You have taken Your great power and reigned.”
Give thanks to God always, give thanks for all things to God by not taken God for granted. How are you living a “thanks-giving” life? Word of God through the bible demonstrates the need for giving thanks always when situations are going the way we want it and when situations are not going the way we want it. Thanks giving should always be deep from the heart. It can be challenging to give thanks when confronting situation becomes exceedingly challenging and testing. Giving thanks to God should not be an every now and then sacrifice, it should be a regular sacrifice. Giving thanks should not be based on how you feel, but to fill your heart with thanking to God. Giving thanks should not be delivered to God only at times of convenience but it should be of commitment.
Do you know to give thanks to God for all things? One that knows to give thanks to God for all things will have all things work together for good as Romans 8:28 buttressed, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God…”
Are you taking to the word of God in part or in whole? The word of God is directly related and none of His word can be left out to achieve the purpose of another. John 6:63 stated, “The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.” The word of God is spirit and when it is being done in us it becomes evidence that the Spirit of God dwells in us. The word of God is what we need to fill us; build us and position us to inherit our possession in Christ Jesus. Take to the word of God in whole by giving thanks for all things and all things will work together for good. In sincerity, begin to give thanks to God as a serious priority. Regardless of situation, give thanks always to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus.

Prayer for today: Ask for God’s enablement to live life of giving thanks to God.

FAITH CAPSULE: Do you believe that the word of God is God?

John 1:1 confirmed that the word of God is God stating, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Believing the word of God is to be living the word of God. The key of believing the word of God is claiming the promises of God in His word. The promise of God that is blessing does not come to pass by accident but by living life by His word. The promises of God are vast but man is vastly far from living by the word of God that delivers the promises of God.
Believing the word of God to claim His promises are:
Obedient to move by His command; be holy; demonstrate love of God;
Obeying His commandment:
God commandment Abram saying, “Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you.” (Genesis 12:1) Abram did not question God’s command; he did not delay or doubt God’s command. Abram went as commanded and claimed the promises of God which stated, “I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:2-3) Abraham’s obedient to the commandment of God provoked the promises of God for his life. Many wants to claim the promises of Abraham but far from allowing the word of God just like Abraham followed the word of God.
Be holy:
Living life by behaving the word of God is what makes man holy. God wants us to be holy as the bible stated, “…but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:15-16) Living holy by the word provokes promises of God as stated, “I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” (2 Corinthians 6:16)
Demonstrate love of God:
To believe God is to love and fear God. To believe by demonstrating the love of God will move God to bless man with His promise of blessing. The bible recorded, “If you ask anything in My name, I will do it. “If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever.” (John 14:14-16) Abraham believed God and love God when he offered Isaac and received promises of God. God is true to His word.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to be living His word by your conduct.

FAITH CAPSULE: With understanding, nothing should come between seeking and following the Lord Jesus.

Luke 9:57-62

Seeking or following God is serving God. Seeking or following God is labor with the reward of retaining the presence of God. To seek God or to follow God is not a fun fair but a war fair. Seeking or following God is not to flow with the crowd. With understanding, nothing should come between seeking and following the Lord Jesus. Following Jesus is not following by the word of mouth but by the word of God. Seeking and following Him should not be for material gain. The bible recorded, “Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” (Luke 9:57-58)
The man that volunteered to follow Jesus without any condition failed to count the cost. The man must have been coming with emotion. His desire to follow must have been rooted in his feelings. Following with feelings is not enough to sustain the challenges of following Him. The Bible stated, “Then He said to another, “Follow Me.” but he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.””(Luke 9:59) In following Him there should be no excuse whatsoever between His calling and accepting to follow. He called one to follow and another volunteered, one approached Jesus and said, “…Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.” (Luke 9:61)
Jesus alone knows the end from the beginning and He sees our heart. Jesus responded to the last one that was asking for excuse to go and bid farewell at house, “But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.””(Luke 9:62) Understanding about living life is to seek or follow Him fully. However, not seeking or following after Him is wandering from understanding. The book of Proverbs 21:16 buttressed, “A man who wanders from the way of understanding will rest in the assembly of the dead.” Jesus said let the dead bury his dead. It is worthy to seek or follow Him by allowing the dead bury the dead. As an acclaimed believer, think it over and let the word of God have a place in your life. It is important for us to know that it is time for us to put aside needs and seek Him fully. Also, in time of seeking or following Him fully challenges will rise but rest in Him shall be in place to reach the expected end of seeking or following Him fully.

Prayer for today: Ask the good God for the grace to follow Him fully.

FAITH CAPSULE: Eternal life demands from us to fight the good fight of faith.

1Timothy 6

God love us by sending His beloved son for us. God’s unwavering love for us is not a liberty for us to live a life of un-accountability. Living life of accountability is nothing but to, “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life…” (1Timothy 6:12) Without fight victory does not have a place that is victory is to be ready for fight. Eternal life is what demands from us to fight the good fight of faith. How do we fight the good fight? To fight the fight of faith is to flee greediness and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love; patience and gentleness are the way to fight the fight of faith.
Flee greediness:
Love of money is the root of all evil which causes man to stray from faith and it leads to the loss of fight. Greediness is what drives the love of money to the trap of sorrow, pain and unexpected termination. 1 Timothy 6:10 stated clearly, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”
Greediness exempt contentment in is camp. With greediness in man’s life contentment does not have a place. Greediness leads to temptation while the bible warned us to flee temptation. Among ways of fleeing temptation is avoiding situations that can come from friends that lead to unholy desires. Avoiding unholy desires will prompt leaving old friends for ones that are encouraging of what is right. Avoid temptation, “Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.” (1Corinthians 15:33) The word of God has warned enough against temptation as a result man cannot hold God responsible for temptation of man as recorded, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ for God cannot be tempted with evil, and He Himself tempts no one.” (James 1:13)
Pursue God:
To pursue God is to hope and trust in God with submission to God’s word will commit man to fight the good fight of faith. Submit to God is pursuing righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness.  Pursue is, to follow in order (direction, instruction) of the word of God. To pursue is to follow close and attend to God. Fighting the fight of faith is to strive and have a great gain. To pursue is the ability to seek to attain from God; to proceed in accordance with word of God and to carry on or continue in the directions of God’s word.
Apostle Paul stated it right, “That you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ’s appearing, (1 Timothy 6:12) Flee ungodliness, Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience and gentleness by allowing godliness with contentment be part of the weapon to fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace to fight the good fight of faith.