FAITH CAPSULE: With humility, cure worldliness.

Deuteronomy 8

One living life to be humble before God is taking a position to be blessed by God. Also, not living life to be humble before God will experience the curse by God.
James 4:10 warns all, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.”
What is your position before God?
TAKING A POSITION NOT TO HUMBLE GOD
A hindrance agent to hinder others from serving God is not a humble one before God and will not experience the blessing of God. 
Pharaoh of Egypt was a hindrance, as he denied the Israelites from serving God. The Bible records, “So Moses and Aaron came into Pharaoh and said to him, “Thus says the Lord God of the Hebrews: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, that they may serve Me.” (Exodus 10:3) 
Pharaoh repeatedly denied the Israelites from serving God to experience a curse but not the blessing of God.
CONFESSING INIQUITY BEFORE GOD IS AN ACT TO HUMBLE GOD
One that is admitting wrongdoing before God is confessing iniquity to prompt the remembrance of God His promises that is good. 
The word of Leviticus 26:40-42 that answers for to the Israelites also speaks to all about what it means to be humble and be blessed by God: “But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers, with their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, and that they also have walked contrary to Me, and that I also have walked contrary to them and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if their uncircumcised hearts are humbled, and they accept their guilt— then I will remember My covenant with Jacob and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham I will remember; I will remember the land.”
It is worthy to confess iniquity to experience the blessing of God that remembers with favor and visits with salvation.
TO BE CONTENT IS TO BE HUMBLE
The word of God identifies Moses, “Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth.” (Numbers 12:3) Moses was content the catalyst to be humble before God. Exodus 2:21 testifies Moses, “Then Moses was content to live with the man, and he gave Zipporah his daughter to Moses.” One with content is satisfied regardless of position in the way of life. The challenge of Moses made him flee from the Palace of Pharaoh in Egypt to Midian. The spirit of content spirit humbled Moses to be available to answer the calling of God.
CHALLENGES WILL HUMBLE ONE
The challenges in the journey of life will humble one to engage the test. The response to the test will demonstrate the heart to God by keeping the word of God. Are you experiencing troubling challenges? Deuteronomy 8:2 records, “And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.” Challenges can be training for one to become humble before God and be blessed by God.
Humility cures worldliness!

Prayer for today: With a desire, ask to be enabled to be humble before God.

FAITH CAPSULE: Is there any mixed multitude with you as your company?

Numbers 14

The Israelites could not claim the promise of God as they failed to disengage mixed multitude to the Promised Land. Exodus 12:37-38 records: “Then the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides children. A mixed multitude went up with them…”  
For the Israelites, a mixed-up multitude is an unholy mix-up. 
At the departure of the Israelites from bondage to the Promised Land, they could not disengage the mixed multitude.
As they progressed on the journey, the effect of mixed multitude caused trouble for the Israelites. The Bible records in Numbers 11:4-6, “Now the mixed multitudes who were among them yielded to intense craving; so, the children of Israel also wept again and said: “Who will give us meat to eat? We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!”  
The initiation of Israelites complaining before God was the complaint of the mixed multitude. 
God responds to the complaint of Israelites, “How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who complain against Me? I have heard the complaints which the children of Israel make against Me. Say to them, ‘As I live,’ says the LORD, ‘just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you: The carcasses of you who have complained against Me shall fall in this wilderness, all of you who were numbered, according to your entire number, from twenty years old and above. Except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun, you shall by no means enter the land which I swore I would make you dwell in.” (Numbers 14:27-30)
Interestingly, Pharaoh and his chariots could not deny the breakthrough of over four hundred years of the Israelites in Egypt but the mixed multitude denied them.
The Red Sea failed to hold back the Israelites from breaking forth, but the complaint of the mixed multitude prompted termination from reaching the Promised Land. 
Is there any mixed multitude with you as your company?
Here are some warning signals that mixed multitude is your company as you journey:
Mix-multitude will keep reminding you of the past when you need to focus on where the Lord is taking you.
Mix-multitude will only cause you to crave for want in the place need.
Mix-multitude will cave into complaining instead of complimenting God.
Mix-multitude will cause one to worry in the place of worship.
Consciously or unconsciously, who is the mix-multitude of your life journey?
Know to deny mix-multitude not to derail your life journey to arrive at the presence of God.
1 Peter 4:7 admonishes all, “But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers.”
Watch against mix-multitude in your life journey, and pray that God will hedge your behind and before you and lay His hand upon me.

Prayer for today: Pray that you will live life to the glory of God.

FAITH CAPSULE: With prayer, you will answer to the calling of God.

1 Samuel 3

Answering the calling of God will position one to the center of His calling for deliverance and preservation, living life to the glory of God, not living a life of waste.
The challenges of life are not enough to stop the calling of God over one that He chooses to give a call to live life for Him.
However, there are forces in place to delay or deny one from not hearing to answer the calling of God.
The Challenge of Samuel delayed him in answering to the calling of God and should be prayed not to experience.
SAMUEL AT HIS CALLING
Samuel was ministering in the house of God when the calling of God came. At his calling, the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation.
1st time of calling: 
When God called Samuel, he answered wrongly, thinking Eli called him, and he said to Eli, “Here I am, for you called me. And he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” And he went and lay down.” (1 Samuel 3:4-5)
Samuel could hear but ran wrongly, and he could not answer. (Answering wrong will reposition one wrongly, He hears but yet runs wrong)
PRAYER:
Ask that everywhere you have misplaced the calling of God over your life, God that reverses irreversible will have mercy to redirect you on the track of His direction over your life. 
2nd time of calling:
Samuel could not answer appropriately but went back and lay down to sleep.
Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, nor was the word of the Lord yet revealed to him. 1 Samuel 3:7 records, “Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, nor was the word of the Lord yet revealed to him.”
Know God, not just know about God to receive the revelation of God. 
PRAYER:
Ask that God will enable you to know Him and be able to receive His revelation over your life, to position you in the center of his divine assignment. 
Ask that the Lord God shall deliver you from the forces that send you back, sleeping in the place to be awake, moving forward to His calling, to be active for His glory.
3rd time of calling:
Samuel ran to Eli and was redirected by Eli saying, “Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and it shall be, if He calls you, that you must say, ‘Speak, Lord, for Your servant hears.’” So, Samuel went and lay down in his place.” (1 Samuel 3:9)
Eli directed Samuel right, saying, YOU MUST SAY, SPEAK LORD.
Samuel now knows what he must do for him to hear from God.
PRAYER
Ask God to enable you to know what you must do, to hear and answer the calling of God over your life.
4th time of calling:
Samuel did as direct by Eli, his overseer, the servant of God spoke to him.
PRAYER 
Ask that God will have mercy to speak again in every juncture you have missed His callings over your life.

FAITH CAPSULE: Prayer never fails to open the door.

Daniel 6

To pray before God demands to understand and to embrace the answer from God with understanding.
The answer to prayer before God is not rooted in forcing God to answer as one pleases.
Answer to prayer before God is: YES, WAIT, or NO
Do you know better than your creator?
God is God, the unchanging changer, and God alone reverses the irreversible.
The earnest prayer of Jesus (Luke 22:44) and Elijah prayer (James 5:17-18) testifies that praying with earnest is labor that will provoke an answer from God.
Prayer will open heaven if one will understand engaging prayer laboriously as a lifestyle.
At the location of water baptism, with people getting baptized, there was no record of baptism backed with prayer. However, when Jesus came for His baptism, He prayed, and heaven opened. Luke 3:21-22 records, “When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened.”
Earnestly, will you engage prayer as your way of life?
Prayer is labor that answers for deliverance and preservation in this wicked world. 
Prayer is labor with a custom approach. David testifies labor prayer for his deliverance and preservation that is custom: “As for me, I will call upon God, and the LORD shall save me. Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, and He shall hear my voice.” (Psalm 55:16-17) 
Praying with labor, with a custom, will not fail to gain and retain the presence of God.
Daniel is another one with a lifestyle of praying with the labor of custom. Daniel 6:10 records the testimony of his deliverance and preservation recorded: “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 down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days.” 
Labor can be a custom way of seeking the intervention of God. Daniel needed the intervention of God when he engaged a prayer as his custom and could not die before his time.
Do you have a schedule of attending to God prayerfully? 
Study the word of God to understand the power of praying before God as a lifestyle. Take note that, “Whatever things were written before was written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. (Romans 15:4) 
With understanding, engage with the prayer of faith as demonstrated by Jesus.
Once, Jesus demonstrated prayer faith when He spoke to a fig tree to be withered. His disciples reacted with curiosity when they asked Jesus: “…how did the fig tree wither away so soon?” (Matthew 21:20) Jesus responds, “…Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive” (Matthew 21:21-22).
With understanding, engage prayer laboriously, not lazily is practicing prayer with labor.

Prayer for today: Ask to be enabled with consistent prayer.

FAITH CAPSULE: What is prayer mean to you?

Psalm 139

How is your prayer before God?
Prayer is a personal communication that is a petition addressed to God. 
Communicating with God can be verbal or non-verbal.
Prayer is in the form of supplication, adoration, praise, contrition (sincere remorse), or thanksgiving. 
Prayer by meditating before God should be with understanding. 
Prayer is also a devotion that can be done either public or private.
Bishop David Oyedepo of the Winners Fellowship once describes prayer as: “Prayer is like a labor room where undeniable proofs are given birth to.” 
Prayer is indeed labor and, when it is actively engaged, it delivers undeniable miracles. 
Prayer with patience will answer as the antidote for suffering.
At the time of the suffering of Job, prayer with patience (communication with God) was continual. 
The Bible encourages all, “Is anyone suffering let him pray” (James 5:13). Give self to prayer as a way of lifestyle with continual communication with God in every moment of life, the evidence of not ignoring the nearness of God to all man.
Prayer always demands earnest engagement (serious intention, purpose, or effort). 
The seriousness, which prayer demands is evident in the testimony of how Elijah prayed for rain. James 5:17-18 “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit” Elijah prayed earnestly (he prayed with seriousness and purpose).  
Is your prayer with seriousness to gain the attention of a man?
Jesus, our Lord, and savior was not exempted from earnest praying. He was on a praying ground when His betrayals came to arrest him. Luke 22:44 records earnest prayer in the labor of Jesus: “And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” 
Are you striving to pray laboriously or to pray lazily? 
The prayer of Jesus was in sweat like drops of blood falling, the evidence of laborious prayer. 
Are you expecting to engage in prayer differently from the way of God to get a result? 
Prayer that is labor is seeking God diligently to be rewarded by God. (Hebrews 11:6). 
Prayer is labor that builds up before God with answers as hedges like a wall for protection gained to be unaccessible for enemies.
For example, the constant prayer of Job over his household answered as hedges which denies the accessibility of Satan for his evil act. 
The Bible records the complaint of Satan before God, after failure not to do evil for Job: “Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.” (Job 1:10) With the prayer of labor that is continual, build-up hedges the protection of God. 
Just like King David, let prayer be your lifestyle and be known by God for hedges of protection. (Psalm 139:5)

Prayer for today: Ask to be enabled to increase strength and understanding in prayer.