FAITH CAPSULE: The promise of God not to live or forsake those that seek Him remains unchanging.

2 Chronicles 20

Whenever the fear of confronting a challenge leads you to seek help from a man, you will gain a comfortable position to fail and disappointment will not disappoint you. However, if your fear of confronting a challenge leads you to seek God’s face for help, then you are set for undeniable victory that glorifies God. King Jehoshaphat is an example of one whose fear of his confronting challenge sent him to seek the face of God for help. Are you facing a daunting, unavoidable challenge that is set to deny or destroy you in any area of life? Take your challenge to God not man. Man will fail and sometimes frustrate you, but God will prevail on your behalf. Jehoshaphat once had a confronting challenge and he took it to God in prayer. God responded to Jehoshaphat’s fear, “Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow go down against them. They will surely come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the brook before the Wilderness of Jeruel. You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the LORD, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem!’ Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the LORD is with you.” (2 Chronicles 20:15-17) In different chapters of the Bible, the promise of God not to live or forsake those that seek Him remains unchanging. Understand and know that the battle against your challenge is not beyond God, position yourself and stand still. When you stand still, you have to be able to see victory over your challenge while the victory is not there yet. Jehoshaphat did all as commanded by God but took a step of faith, “…bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem bowed before the LORD, worshiping the LORD. Then the Levites of the children of the Kohathites and of the children of the Korahites stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel with voices loud and high.”(2 Chronicles 20:18-19)  The fear that chased Jehoshaphat to God revealed God’s glory. The fear of Jehoshaphat led to a faithful victory because the Lord fought the battle on behalf of the children of Israel. It is written, “And the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries when they heard that the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel. Then the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest all around.”(2Chronicles 20:29-30) Take your challenge to God for Him to fight on your behalf.

Prayer for today: Ask God to help you and save you according to His mercy.

FAITH CAPSULE: God does not run out of mercy, one runs out of God’s mercy.

Luke 1:26-55

The Bible describes that, “The Lord is good and His mercy is everlasting…” (Psalm 100:5) The mercy of God is, “great above the heavens…” (Psalm 108:4) Also, “The earth O Lord is full of Your mercy…” (Psalm 119:64) The mercy of God endures forever, meaning that God’s mercy cannot and will never run out. His mercy is abundant and enough for each and every one of His creations. Often times, it is His creation that frequently runs out of the mercy of God. In this wicked world, there is nothing that matters for one like being under the mercy of the good God. Once you are constantly covered by the mercy of God, there is no way you can be messed up by the mess of this wicked world. Apostle Paul was quoting the word of God to Moses when he stated, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.”(Romans 9:15) The same word of God that is true also reveals to us how taking some stand in the word of God will position one on undeniable ground for the mercy of God. Without any doubt, having the fear of God in life is taking a position on undeniable ground for the mercy of God. Keep it in mind that to fear God is to love God. Furthermore, looking into few scriptural verses from the Old Testament and the New Testament will confirm to us and open our understanding that mercy is available at all times for the one that loves or fears God. It is written in Exodus 20:6, “but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.” The book of Psalm 119:132, “Look upon me and be merciful to me, as Your custom is toward those who love Your name.” In the New Testament, the Book of Luke also recorded in Luke 1:50, “And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation.” As mentioned earlier, to fear and to Love God is evidently the same. What the fear of God does is that it culminates the manifestation of mercy in the life of anyone that fears God. It is a great mercy that was bestowed on Mary to be the biological mother of Jesus. By the testimony of Mary after the visitation of angel Gabriel, it is clear she feared God and that qualified her for an undeniable visitation of God’s mercy. The mercy of God matters in all areas of life. Allow the fear of God or be zealous in loving God and the mercy of God will not depart you and your generation to come.

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

FAITH CAPSULE:God performs in prayer and perfect in thanks giving.

Luke 17:11-19

The Bible talks about giving thanks always for all things, “Giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 5:20) Are you giving thanks for all things or only things that you get the way you want it to be? Are you getting what you want and turning back to the giver without thanksgiving? Could it be that you are forgetting to give thanks where it is appropriate? Are you one that will wait to get what you want before giving thanks? The book of Romans states, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”(Romans 8:28) When there is love for God, there will be understand to thank God for all things. The one that thank God for all things will have all things work together for good. God always expecting our thanksgiving and this is evident in the documentation of Jesus and ten lepers that were healed. When ten lepers were healed, “…one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God.” (Luke 17:15) One lepers return to give thanks with a loud voice prompted Jesus’ response, “Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.” (Luke 17:18-19) Only God knows how long the returned leper has been trusting God for his healing before Jesus spoke healing into his life. The important point here is that he was able to go back and offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving. Also, he was not thinking thanksgiving in his heart but gave thanks with a loud voice. Jesus’ response testifies to the fact that He was waiting for the lepers to return for thanksgiving. Just as He waited for the leper to return for thanks giving, so He is waiting for us to return and give thanks. Return and do not wait till the year is out. Give thanks for all year long prayer request manifestation. Have you been trusting God for any miracle that is yet in your hand? Provoke the hand of God by thanking Him expressively for the prayers that are not yet manifested. God performs in prayer and perfect in thanks giving. One leper went back for thanksgiving and Jesus added perfection to his healing deliverance. Consider this month your month of thanks giving and your coming month will become your month of manifestation. Thanking God before prayer manifestation is exercising faith to provoke God’s hand on your behalf.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace to be constant and consistent in giving thanks for all things.

FAITH CAPSULE: Let it penetrate deep in your heart that in seeking and serving Him, you have to follow Him.

John 1:35-51

Whatever one is missing as a believer can only be found in seeking and serving our Lord and Savior. Jesus said, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33) Is God first in your seeking and serving Him? Each and every acclaimed believer is overwhelmed with different purpose and different agenda. Some seek and serve for financial gain while some seek and serve Him in attempt to get answer to their confronting issues. In your seeking and serving Him, time has always been what you are using as a determinant. In seeking and serving God you are the kind with constant and consistent consideration of how, when, where or what you can deliver in your service to the Lord. If one will consider today that time which is being used as a guard post is not in control of man but God that gives it, one will begin to give all to God. Let it be registered in you today that seeking and serving God is not a convenient engagement but a commitment. Commitment is a sacrifice and only God and not man can determine and accept what He considers to be a reasonable sacrifice. If you have not denied yourself, your seeking and serving God is conceit; your seeking and serving Him is not recorded in heaven; Jesus will declare later that He did not know you. Have you actually denied yourself for the Lord’s service? As an acclaimed believer, it is not only when you see believers around you that you should be acting unselfish. Also, it is not only in the presence of fellow believers that acting to be holy should be in place. You know it is not true and it is false humility. Man can be deceived but God will see through the heart and He cannot be deceived, “For the Lord is the God of knowledge; and by Him all actions are weighed.” (1 Samuel 2:3) Let it penetrate deep in your heart that in seeking and serving Him, you have to follow Him. John 12:26, “If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me: and where I am, there my servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.” Ignorance is not an excuse. Ignorance will only make a destitute out of a believer; it will ridicule your journey if you fail to master what it takes to follow the Master.

Prayer for today: In your asking, ask God for the grace to seek and serve Him indeed and in truth.