FAITH CAPSULE: With thanks and praise is to find God.

Psalm 104

Thanking God and praising God is with desire to reach God.
One that reaches God is worshiping and seeking God.
Thanking and praising cannot be separated and should be to find God.
Psalm 150:6 states, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.”
One who knows to praise is thanking God.
There is so much God has done, and He is doing that provokes thanking God as a way of life.
To thank and praise God is appreciating, giving regard, and acknowledging God for every good reason.
The character of God is good and deserves thanking and praising him, the perfect creator.
Do you realize that praising God should be at every breath?
Are you one who waits for thanking God elaborately once a year?
Thanking and praising God is not only at every breath but also at every moment.
Why thank God on your own time instead of every time?
Do your challenges reduce your thanking God?
Ignore your challenges, and always give thanks to God for all things.
Romans 8:28 records that all things work together for good. 
Ephesians 5:20 encourages, “Giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”  
For all things, in all things, give God thanks rooted in the heart, not just in the tongue.
Give thanks to God to gain the presence of God.
God inhabits (enthrones) the praises of His people. (Psalm 22:3)
Make it your way of life to gain the presence of God with thanksgiving and to retain His presence with praise.
Give thanks, praising God at all times!
Praising God is seeking God.
Psalm 47:7 records, “For God is the King of all the earth; Sing praises with understanding.”
As praising God is with understanding, giving thanks to God should be with understanding. One giving thanks to God with understanding will gain access to the presence of God. Psalm 100:4 buttresses the meaning of giving thanks to God with understanding by stating, “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.”
With the understanding of thanking God, Jesus thanks God for raising Lazarus from death after four days in the grave.
John 11:41-42 records, “Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You always hear Me…”
A meaningful thanksgiving to God with understanding will provoke gaining the presence of God.
The word of God does not lie, unlike the word of man, full of lies.
To be alive is a privilege of God, the mercy of God, not a thing of merit.
Meditate by thanking God all day long.
Indeed, and in truth, thousands of tongues are not enough to thank God enough.
God alone is more than worthy of thanks and praise.

Prayer for today: Ask to be enabled with unceasing thanksgiving and praising God.

FAITH CAPSULE: God awaits one who turns to Him.

Numbers 16

What or who are you turning to?
In this wicked world, know to let your turning be to God.
John 2:25 informs all, “But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men.”
If Jesus commits to no man, what prompts you to turn to turn and you commit to such?
Turning away from God is rejecting God.
In life, there is no reasonable excuse for turning away from God.
Almighty God is in a position that no one should turn away from His hand.
Are you turning away from the hand of God?
Moses represented the hand of God to deliver the Israelites from the bondage of over four hundred years, but the Israelites repeatedly turned away from God.
All the writing was clear on the wall. Moses was not operating on his power when Korah and his entourage turned against the hand of God upon Moses.
The Bible records, “Now Korah the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, with Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men; and they rose up before Moses with some of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty leaders of the congregation, representatives of the congregation, men of renown. They gathered together against Moses and Aaron, and said to them, “You take too much upon yourselves, for all the congregation is holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?” (Numbers 16:1-3)
It is hard to believe that some could ever think of rising against Moses despite the demonstration of the hand of God upon Moses.
Renowned men were among those who took part in the uprising against Moses.
The Israelites turned against the hand of God. Moses responded to Korah and his team to let them know that God sent him. Numbers 16:31-32 record, “…as he finished speaking all these words, that the ground split apart under them, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, with all their goods.”
They were all buried and died before Moses carrying the hand of God.
Have you turned away from God?
In the parable of the lost son, Jesus points out that returning is never too late after turning away from God.
The lost son left home too early when he received the portion of goods that fell to him.
The lost son left for new land, turning away from his father to become exposed to lack.
Father is always waiting for a return to him after turning away from Him.
God is a good God and awaits one that will turn to Him.

Prayer for today: Ask that you will not fail to turn to God at the appointed time.

FAITH CAPSULE: Prayer of Jesus in the garden demonstrates that prayer is work, a laborious assignment.

Daniel 6, Luke 22:39-53

How is your prayer life? In this wicked world, prayer is all it takes to be delivered from temptation.
When disciples of Jesus followed Him to the Mount of Olives, He told them, “…Pray that you may not enter into temptation…” (Luke 22:40)
Prayer is a master key to shutting out temptation and denying evil to gain entrance.
Prayer, being a master key to shut, will also open up closed doors for one to gain entrance to receive from God.
Prayer is not a fun fair; it is a laborious–fair.
The prayer time of Jesus in the garden demonstrates that prayer is work, a laborious assignment.
His prayer demonstrates, “And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” (Luke 22:44)
Jesus, our Lord, and Savior, demonstrated to all that understanding and knowing prayer is to sail through in this wicked world.
Are you counting on someone to pray on your behalf?
Know that prayer of labor demands your personal prayer engagement more than counting on someone praying on your behalf.
When Daniel realized that writing was set against him in judgment, the Bible records his reaction, “Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went home. And in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt on his knees three times that day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days. Then these men assembled and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God.” (Daniel 6:10-11)
Daniel could not count on prayer from someone in prayer session but engaged in prayer time.
The master key, the prayer of Daniel, shut down the judgment while in the den of the lion.
The mouth lions were shut up as Daniel came out unscratched. (Daniel 6:19-22)
The prayer of Jesus on Mount Olives was not a fun fair; it was laborious prayer time engaged in agony.
Also, the laborious prayer of Jesus was earnestly engaged.
Earnest prayer is intended prayer, a purposeful prayer to be engaged with zealous sincerity. The prayer session of Jesus on Mount Olives was labor, with the addition of the testimony of His sweat like great drops of blood.
Is your prayer labor or casual?
Claiming Jesus is not by mouth but to be living like Jesus.
Prayer is a must.
Prayer is not loud making.
Prayer is not a demonstration of pleasing man; prayer is not to be arousing empty emotion. Seek God laboriously; engage prayer as the master key.
Believe that God no eye has seen, will act for the one who waits for Him.
Prayer is the master key.
Consider your prayer session to avoid prayer amiss.

Prayer for today: Ask that the strength of praying on the altar shall not cease.

FAITH CAPSULE: God visits one who is doing good.

2 Kings 4:8-17

One doing good is investing to experience the visitation of God. 
Always know to do good when the situation demands doing good.
James 4:17 encourages the reason to know doing good, “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.” 
One who knows to do good but not to do good gives self to sin.
Doing good is among the fruits of the spirit. 
Galatians 5:22 states, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.”
Romans 12:9, “…Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.”
1 Thessalonians 5:15, “See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all.”
2 Thessalonians 3:13, “But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary in doing good.”
Hebrews 13:16, “But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.”
God visits one doing good.
Give yourself to investing good at all times to reap from the visitation of God.
From henceforth, begin to do good for the glory of God.
Doing good from the depth of the heart will provoke caring with a glaring action.
It is worth doing good by acting with care knowing fully well that what you are doing is for the glory of God.
A Shunammite woman, ignorantly invested in doing good to the man of God in her location, 2 Kings 4:9-10 records the doing of the Shunammite woman, “And she said to her husband, ‘Look now, I know that this is a holy man of God who passes by us regularly. Please, let us make a small upper room on the wall; and let us put a bed for him there, and a chair and a lampstand; so it will be, whenever he comes to us, he can turn in there.’” 
The Shunammite woman made life comfortable for the man of God.
The man of God did not look away but acknowledged the Shunamite woman by sending his servant, “…Say now to her, ‘“Look, you have been concerned for us with all this care. What can I do for you? Do you want me to speak on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army?”’ (2 Kings 4:13) 
Elisha later realized that the Shunamite woman had no child.
Elisha prayed over her life. 2 Kings 3:16 records, “About this time next year, you shall embrace a son.”
The Shunammite woman invested in doing good before God.
In her doing, she reaps to receive the blessing of the womb to become a mother.
Truly one who knows to do good will reap the blessing of God.
Know to be doing good, experience the move of God over your life.

Prayer for today: Ask that God will enable you to do good all the days of your life.

FAITH CAPSULE: The choice to control your mouth is your deliverance.

2 Kings 7:1-20

Understanding is the ability to listen carefully and be in charge of what comes out of the mouth. 
Truly understanding is a wellspring of life to one who has it. (Proverbs 16:22) 
Do you have an understanding of navigating in all ways?
All should take charge and not live as a potential fool. 
The Bible warns, “A fool’s mouth is his destruction, and his lips are the snare of his soul.” (Proverbs 18:7)
The word of God warns the mouth can indeed lead to destruction, but understanding can intervene for the mouth, not lead to destruction.
The Bible also warns in Proverbs 13:3, “He who guards his mouth preserves his life, but he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction.” 
Take note and know that understanding will cause the mouth to preserve life. 
With understanding, are you taking charge of your mouth, not to cause negative challenges, confessing negative in the place of positive?
For example, during the time of the prophet of God, Elisha, a severe famine reduced the land to a place of lack. 
While the shortage of needs was rampant across the land, “Then Elisha said, “Hear the word of the LORD. Thus says the LORD: ‘Tomorrow about this time a seah of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria.’”(2Kings 7:1) 
In response to the word of Elisha, with doubt, one of the officers of Elisha responded negatively and questioned Elisha how a breakthrough could be possible in the face of severe famine. 
The officer failed to control his mouth by stating negative but took the place of a fool.
The officer foolishly responded to the prophecy of Elisha when he spoke out of his mouth with a lack of understanding, “…Look, if the LORD would make windows in heaven, could this thing be (2 Kings 7:2)?” 
Imagine the demonstration of a lack of understanding that caused doubt from the officer.
Do you doubt what God can do? 
Can you imagine yourself waking up in the position of plenty instead of waking up in the place of famine? 
With understanding, if you know that God is still on the throne, then believe that miracles are not beyond God.
Elisha said the officer saw with his eyes but could not touch. 
2 Kings 7:20 records the end of the officer, “And so it happened to him, for the people trample him in the gate, and he died.” 
God opened the window of plenty; the lack no longer exists.
The officer could not control his mouth, confessed negatively, and destruction became his portion.
Jesus taught the possibility of God when He stated, “…With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26) 
With understanding, be in charge of your mouth with a confession.
With your positive confession over negative, the possibility in the place of impossibility is not beyond God to answer for you.

Prayer for today: Ask God to deliver you from lack of understanding.