FAITH CAPSULE: Giving thanks to God is about living for God.

John 1:1-18

DO NOT BE TOO QUIET TO DENY VICTORIOUS
Give thanks to God from the root of the heart by opening the mouth, not just thinking thanks.
Are you too quiet to deny victory for yourself?
All should let giving thanks to God be the character as a way of life.
Are the challenges of yesterday or today overwhelming you from giving thanks continually?
Give thanks to God with a loud voice to be victorious.
Jeremiah 30:19 records, “Then out of them shall proceed thanksgiving and the voice of those who make merry; I will multiply them, and they shall not diminish…” 
Regardless of challenges, give thanks for all things, and all things shall work together for good.
Ask God for a heart of thanksgiving continually.
FOCUS ON GOD ALONE
God sent His word to heal and to deliver from destruction. (Psalm 107:20)
One that cannot see deliverance in the word of God denies self from gaining the intervention of God.
To become worried in the face of a challenge is not looking up to God. 
Stop beholding challenges, but look up to God.
Despite the experience of the deliverance of the Israelites, they looked into challenges, not God. 
Exodus 14:10-12 records, “And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid…” 
Does that sound like you? 
Ask to be bold and have character in His word in the face of world challenges. 
GOD IS NEAR AT ALL TIMES
Living in the consciousness that God is near is evidence of divine protection. 
Do you know that God is near, but you are living outside of the word of God? 
Are you “A man who is in honor, yet does not understand, is like the beasts that perish.” (Psalm 49:20) 
Avoid not living by the word of God, which is the evidence of living outside of God, not keeping to His word to become far from Him. 
In the near to God is the protection for one that lives life by the word of God.
Keep in mind that the word of God is God. 
Ask to live life in the consciousness of the nearness of God.
LIVE LIFE BY THE WORD OF GOD
God magnifies His word above all His name. (Psalm 138:2)
One serving self in the name of serving or seeking God is pretending, not attending to the word of God.
Give attention to the word of God to gain and retain His presence, walking with Him.
Search self to correct self by walking with God.
David, a man after the heart of God, searches himself, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139:23)
Wicked carry words in the mouth but not in the heart. (Jeremiah 12:1-2) 
Pray to live the word of God as a believer.

FAITH CAPSULE: God is always in Absolute control of His plan over every creation.

Genesis 43

There is an appointed time for everything and every situation that transpires under heaven. 
God alone is God.
God does not sleep nor slumber. 
Everything passes through God. 
He sees it all, and none is out of His control. 
No one situation is outside of His intervention. 
God alone has solutions in His hands.
God resolves all unsolvable situations in life, and He is the unchanging changer. 
The brothers of Joseph attempted to terminate his dream when they sold him out at age seventeen. 
At age thirty, Joseph stood before the Pharaoh of Egypt. 
The dream that sent Joseph to slavery positioned him for the manifestation of the calling over his life.
The brothers of Joseph came to him at a new ground where he was privileged to ask his brothers, “Is your father well…?” 
The Bible records the response of the brothers who sell him to slavery to avoid bowing down before him. 
Genesis 43:28, “And they answered, “Your servant our father is in good health; he is still alive.” And they bowed their heads down and prostrated themselves.” 
God is always in absolute control of His plan over every creation.
The brothers did not only bow, but they prostrated before Joseph. God is complete to confirm His doing.
From the moment it became apparent to Saul that David was going to become the king, it was hell over the life of David in the hand of Saul. 
Saul chased David from the valley to the cave to terminate the plans of God concerning David. 
The presence of God prevented King Saul from bringing down David.
David eventually became the calling of God.
Despite his challenges when the appointed time was up for David, nothing could relocate David outside of the calling of God.
The mountain that has refused to resolve itself and give way to your breakthrough will fall at the time of God.
2 Samuel 5:4-5 states, “David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. 5 In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem, he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.” 
The time David spent running and hiding for his life because of the hand of Saul was nothing to compare with the years he spent reigning and ruling as God ordained. 
The mountain that refuses to fall will fall, the pain will go, and the gain will come. 
God is true.
King David prayed, “Be pleased O LORD, to deliver me; O LORD, make haste to help me! Let them be ashamed and brought to mutual confusion who seek to destroy my life; Let them be driven backward and brought to dishonor who wish me evil.” (Psalm 40:13-14) 
The Lord God answered and delivered King David.
Keep in mind that God is the unchanging changer that reverses irreversible.
Focus on God to gain and retain His presence.

Prayer for today: Ask for the hand of God to rest upon you for His plan to become established over your life.

FAITH CAPSULE: In the hand of God, there is great deliverance. 

Ezekiel 37

God testified about His hand in Isaiah 50:2, “Why, when I came, was there no man? Why, when I called, was there none to answer? Is My hand shortened at all that it cannot redeem? Or have I no power to deliver…?” Again, Isaiah 59:1 testified about the hand of God, “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save…” 
Without any doubt, no hand on earth will deny the hand of God in operation. 
The hand of God is mighty in battle and great in deliverance. 
Who can deny the hand of God? 
There has been none in all history, and there will be none in ages. 
Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, failed to deny the hand of God from bringing the children of Israel out of the bondage of over four hundred years. 
Exodus 3:19-21 records, “But I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not even by a mighty hand. So I will stretch out My hand and strike Egypt with all My wonders which I will do in its midst, and after that, he will let you go. 21 And I will give this person favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and it shall be when you go, that you shall not go empty-handed.”  
In the hand of God, there is great deliverance. 
In the hand of God, there is uncommon favor that answers when called upon Him.
Are you a believer who constantly desires the hand of God to come upon you? 
Meditate for the hand of God to come upon you, and know that desires will gain the hand of God to deposit desire.
Ezekiel testifies, “The hand of the Lord came upon me and brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley, and it was full of bones. Then He caused me to pass by them all around, and behold, there were very many in the open valley, and indeed they were very dry. And He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” So I answered, “O Lord God, You know.” (Ezekiel 1:1-3) 
When His hand comes upon the life of one, shall set such up in a position to see miracle in the place of mockery.
With the hand of God, one will see life in the place of death.
When the hand of God comes upon one, such will gain position getting answers for every question in life. 
The answer from God will gain access for the glory of God. 
It is not a one-time prayer to ask for the hand of God upon your life but a constant and consistent prayer. 
Meditate and think of His hand coming upon you. 

Prayer for today: Ask God for the same hand upon Ezekiel to answer for you, testifying His hand of greatness as Ezekiel did. 

FAITH CAPSULE: Lack of knowledge destroys and can lead to captivity. 

Hosea 4

In all areas of life, it is understanding that leads to having a knowing edge.
Understanding is important.
Psalm 14:2 records, “The Lord looks down from heaven upon the children of men, To see if there are any who understand, who seek God.”
Knowledge is crucial to navigating the wicked world.
Hosea 4:6 reports, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.” 
Do you have an understanding that prompts knowledge?
The acclaimed believers get destroyed when and where they should not because they lack knowledge.
Many reject knowledge because of a lack of understanding, disregarding the hand of God.
His people did not embrace knowledge to give regard to the works of God. 
Psalm 28:5 states, “Because they do not regard the works of the Lord, nor the operation of His hands, He shall destroy them and not build them up. 
Apart from becoming a vessel set for destruction, a lack of knowledge also qualifies one as a candidate for captivity.
Isaiah 5:13 states, “Therefore my people have gone into captivity because they have no knowledge; their honorable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.” 
Lack of knowledge destroys and can lead to captivity. 
God has made available wisdom that is His word. 
The wisdom of God is full of conditions and promises that will enable His children to have an edge over challenges and not be destroyed or go into captivity if His children give regard to His wisdom.
For example, having a way where there is no way, standing and not falling on the ground where others fall can be described as having a knowing edge.
As a child of God, knowing and engaging the promises of God is what identifies one as knowing.  
Psalm 136:5 identifies wisdom as what God used when He made the heavens. 
Without a doubt, wisdom is the word of God. 
The same wisdom is made available for the children of God to avoid a lack of knowledge and not to become a vessel of captivity.
An engagement to the same wisdom (word of God) will not become a victim of destruction.
With understanding, there shall be a knowing edge and no captivity or destruction. 
1 Corinthians 1:30 points out that Jesus (the living word of God) is the wisdom from God and one that gives indeed to Him is set not to become a victim of captivity.
What is it that denies one from lack of Knowledge?
Wisdom without understanding will always lead to a lack of knowledge. 
Pay attention to gain understanding and not become a vessel set to perish.
The choice is to set self for destruction or set to become captive of the wicked world. 

Prayer for today: Ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His word to keep you from destruction.  

FAITH CAPSULE: Know to engage the word, meditating on the word of God.

Joshua 1

GIVE YOURSELF TO THE WORD OF GOD
Psalm 143:8 testifies, “Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning. For in You do I trust; Cause me to know the way in which I should walk for I lift up my soul to You.”  Hearing, observing, and obeying God in the morning will make the difference for the day. Make provision for hearing the word of God first in the morning. Trust and hope in God for daily endeavors. 
Give yourself to the word of God to lead you with deliverance.
KNOW TO AVOID SELF DESTRUCTION
Pride is a route to self-destruction.
Pride will deny one not to hear and give ear to the word of God. 
Jeremiah 13:15 buttresses, “Hear and give ear: do not be proud, for the Lord has spoken.” 
Search yourself to identify what is denying you from giving yourself to the word of God.
Whatever seems right but not the word of God is not right before God. Proverbs 14:12 warns, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.”
Pride is going against the word of God.
BE RESPONSIBLE TO PURSUE GOD 
Pursuing God is a responsibility, which is the ability to act on your own without supervision. Pursue God to become godly. Today, acclaimed believers are not conversant in the word of God but conversant in the things of the world, having a form of godliness but lacking the power of God. 2 Timothy 3:5 states, “having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! Be a responsible one to pursue God by living godliness with the evidence of the power of God in your life.
RESPONSIBILITY BEFORE GOD IS THE PRICE OF GREATNESS
The venture of David to save Keilah from the Philistines made David inquire about the direction from God. 1 Samuel 23:2 records, “Therefore David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go and attack these Philistines?”. 
David heard from God, “…Go and attack the Philistines and save Keilah.” 
Inquiring from God for unfailing direction is evidence of one responsible before God. 
Get to know that responsibility is the price to be great in the hand of God.
Be responsible, seeking the direction of God.
LIVE LIFE FOR THE CALLING OF GOD
The one who obeys the direction of God will be connected to God to arrive at divine assignment in life.
However, answering the calling of God will mount with challenges, but obedience to God will deliver in it all. Psalm 34:19 encourages, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the Lord delivers him out of them all.” 
In the journey of answering the calling of God, stagnation will delay, and mockery will mount to discourage, but the miracle of victory will answer.
Are you called by yourself or called by the world?
Live life for God!

Prayer today: Ask God to enable meditation of His word.