FAITH CAPSULE: It is not possible to be living a life centered on God and be a looser.

Genesis 13

Abraham told Lot in Genesis 13:9, “Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me, if you take the left, then I will go to the right; or if you go to the right, then I will go to the left”. Abraham needed a voluntary separation with Job when he made statement of contentment and not allowed grievances with Job. As one that is contented, Abraham sounded like he did not care, but he was counting on the promise of provision that the Lord delivered to him at the beginning of his journey. Abraham was an evidence of man with content. Abraham did not rope himself with love for abundance. Ecclesiastes 5:10 pointed out, “He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver; Nor he who loves abundance, with increase…” Abraham was desired with the promise of God. Abraham did not replace the promises of God with possessions. It is not possible to be living a life centered on God and be a looser. All over the Scripture, there are many giants in the hand of God that lived a contented life with testimonies of greatness through the goodness and mercy of God. He was a man of contentment. He was always letting go all that requires a let go; never struggled with threat of lack and never doubted blessings of provision.
Paul, in his first letter to Timothy, mentioned that, “Now 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 clothing, with these we shall be content.” (1 Timothy6:6-8) Paul did not call it ‘gain’ but a ‘great gain’. Paul was not just using the power of the word, but was also sharing what his experience has been by living the word of God.
In the journey of life, contentment is like a driver that never mistake but arrive at the expected end. Contentment answered for Abraham, it also answered for Moses. Moses, in his journey to the center of divine center, contentment in him did not allowed derailment. The bible recorded, “Then Moses was content to live with the man, and he gave Zipporah his daughter to Moses.  And she bore him a son. He called his name Gershom, for he said, “I have been a stranger in a foreign land.” (Exodus 2:21-22)
In life, to settle with the promises of God demands contentment and denies desire that outruns possessions. When contentment is rooted in godliness of a believer, there will be grace to move forward in the center of God assignment. What is it that you need to let go and allow the hand of God? It is important to know that godliness with contentment is great gain.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace of contentment to take charge of your life journey.

FAITH CAPSULE: Take control of the things that you expose yourself to.

2 Samuel 11

Without doubt, what eyes of man feed on the man’s heart will live on. When man begins to set eyes on negativity, man’s heart shall become corrupted. What are you setting eyes on that feed your heart? David, a man after God’s own heart lost control of his heart when his eyes recklessly set on negativity.
It is written, “It happened in the spring of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the people of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem. Then it happened one evening that David arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king’s house. And from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold. So David sent and inquired about the woman. And someone said, “Is this not Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?” (2 Samuel 11:1-3) David’s eyes fed his heart when he SAW and BEHELD a beautiful woman bathing. What are you beholding wrongly? David’s heart was not diligent enough to rebuke the negative presentation of the eyes.
What are your eyes feeding your heart? David responded to his eyes as his heart acted, “Then David sent messengers, and took her; and she came to him, and he lay with her, for she was cleansed from her impurity; and she returned to her house. And the woman conceived; so she sent and told David, and said, “I am with child.” (2 Samuel 11:4-5) Indeed, David committed crime before God when he eventually set-up the death of Bathsheba’s husband (Uriah).
David’s eye fed his heart wrong with evil engagement. David was responsible for the killing of Uriah and took over his wife Bathsheba. David could not hide from God but the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.
Take control of the things that you see, do not expose your heart to the ways of self-destruction. Keep your eyes clean to keep your heart pure. Jesus called the eye the lamp of the body in Matthew 6:2, “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” What the eyes feed on the heart lives on. A heart that is kept diligently will be pure. To be pure in heart is to be righteous. To be righteous will identify a believer as one with integrity. A believer with Integrity lives the life for God. The pure in the heart are not wicked and they will see God.

Prayer for today: Ask God to enable your eyes and heart to keep on positives.

FAITH CAPSULE: Fear God and have in the heart that it is wisdom to know God.

Psalm 103

The book of Psalm 64:9 stated, “All men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider His doing.” Do you fear God as commanded by the word of God? Does your fear of God reflect the life you are living? Proverbs 19:23, “The fear of the LORD leads to life, and he who has it will abide in satisfaction; he will not be visited with evil.” Fearing God should not be a one-time engagement but a continuous way of living life. It is wisdom to know and be living life in the fear of God. The Psalmist also pointed out that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10). Samuel spelled out clearly in 1 Samuel 12:24, “Only fear the LORD and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you.” Joshua 24:14 admonished, “Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth…” When there is fear of God in the life of a man, there will be every reason to serve Him in truth with the whole heart. Any believer that is serving God with conscious of all the great work the Lord has done will live life with the understanding that indeed there is nothing God cannot do.
Can you think of what God cannot do?
It is foolishness to give up on God for what God can do.
Fear God and have in the heart that it is wisdom to know God. Not to fear God and have in the heart that it is wisdom to know God is foolishness. It is recorded in Psalm 14:1, “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God’. They are corrupt, they have abominable works, there is none who does good.’” Where do you stand? Do you fear Him just in the mouth or do you actually fear Him in your heart?
Those who truly fear God takes a position as His treasure. To fear God is taking a position of no distance from God. Psalm 103:11 buttressed, “For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him.”
It is grace to be alive. Living life is not a right but a privilege of God. It is wisdom to know that in living life there is nothing that counts most but to fear God. The book of Ecclesiastes concluded with a clear warning stating, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)

Prayer for today:  Ask God to put His fear in your heart so that you will not depart from Him.

FAITH CAPSULE: In the journey of life, breakdown often comes before breakthrough.

Job 1, 2

The bible described Job, “There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil.” (Job 1:1) Man with the fear of God is set to be complete before God. However, the story of Job was not exempted from experiencing the wicked one. Despite of Job’s faithfulness he was exposed to the attack of Satan but could not be terminated. Job, a man that feared God lost all of his wealth; Satan attacked his health; Satan attacked his character; Job lost His property and children. Above all, his wife and friends ridiculed his faith. In the midst of it all, Job remained persistently faithful and not reviled God.
Job was broken in all area of his life but his breakthrough was intact when God responded to his faithfulness. Job 42:12-15 recorded God’s response to Job’s faithfulness, “Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning; for he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and one thousand female donkeys.  He also had seven sons and three daughters.  And he called the name of the first Jemimah, the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-Happuch.  In all the land were found no women so beautiful as the daughters of Job; and their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers.”
Job was broken down but his breakthrough was upheld by God.
So many were broken before breakthrough in the Bible and all were meant for the glory of the Almighty God. You love the Lord and your walk has been consistently relevant in line with God’s word. Things have changed overnight; you are down, friends can no longer help, and desertions are showing their faces everywhere you turn. You can hardly count on anyone for help and it seems you are the only Christian that is out of place. All that surrounds you is beginning to wonder how long you will go through what you are going through. Complaint, discouragement or self-destruction is not what you need. You need to know that God will see you through if you will keep seeing through with the mirror of the word of God. God has a plan for you. Isaiah 63:14 buttressed, “As a beast goes down into the valley, and the spirit of the LORD causes him to rest, so You lead your people, to make yourself a glorious name.” The point here is that God constantly want to be glorified and make Himself a glorious name. When your breakthrough arrives, He will be gloriously glorified concerning your life. Job is a testimony. God will see you through. You are not alone.

Prayer for today: Ask God, “O Lord my God, look upon me and let me not be a failure, in Jesus’ name.”

FAITH CAPSULE: Lord helps in time of troubling challenge.

Psalm 3

When trouble increase it becomes a challenging trouble. A challenging trouble graduates to a permanent trouble. It is tolerating trouble that terminates troubled ones. In time of challenging trouble man’s faith is questioned. David, a man after God’s own heart had increasing trouble when he stated in Psalm 3:1-2, “Lord, how they have increased who trouble me! Many are they who rise up against me. Many are they who say of me, “There is no help for him in God.””
David testified how he dealt with his own increasing trouble.
First, David acknowledged God for His awesomeness by stating, “But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, My glory and the One who lifts up my head.” (Psalm 3:3) David did not allow his challenge to cloud is worship. David worshiped instead of worrying when he acknowledged God for what He has done and what He was doing in his life. Acknowledging God in a time of troubling challenge is a way of thanking God and it provokes God’s hand of intervention.
Secondly David testified, “I cried to the Lord with my voice, and He heard me from His holy hill.” (Psalm 3:4) Crying is not a sign of weakness. David did not let pride but he cried out loud. It was a cry with his voice not in his heart; it was a cry that went out loud to God’s (His) holy hill.The word of God requested open mouth wide and God will fill with one’s request. (Psalm 81:10) David testified that the Lord heard him from His holy hill.
Thirdly David mentioned, “I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustained me.”(Psalm 3:5) After having demonstrated worship in the place of worrying, David slept over his trouble just like Jesus. Once, during Jesus’ cross-over journey with His disciples, a troubling storm became a troubling challenge. (Mark 4:35-41) In the midst of storm, “Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a pillow.” (Mark 4:38) When the disciples were no longer able to hold to faith, they woke Jesus up and Jesus rebuked the storm. With trust in God, David lay and slept despite troubling challenges. David rested his case in the hand of God.
Fourth, David disallowed fear to have a place in his troubling challenge. He stated, “I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.”(Psalm 3:6) It is true that when fear rises faith will sink and when faith rises fear must sink. Faith and fear does not tolerate each other and that is why a believer must eliminate fear. David made a conscious stand against fear when he declared, “I will not be afraid.” In the face of your troubling challenge, take a conscious stand of faith and not be afraid.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to hold on faith in the place of fear.