Faith Capsule: Look up to God without looking out for man’s answer for your question.

2 Timothy 4

Jesus admonished us, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (Matthew 7:7-8) Prayer demands conscious engagement. Prayer that is prayed with understanding is undeniable. Prayer works but it is work. With God, prayer can never be too much, but it has to be with understanding. The Bible pointed out how Jesus always withdraw to all night prayer by Himself. Are you living a prayer-less life? Have you been getting away in life without praying? It is certain that life without prayer will pay the price of consequence that is not fun. It is worthy to give self to constant prayer just like giving self to not missing vitamin for life sustenance.  Man should mark it that there is no excuse that is enough to be excused from praying before God.
The assurance of getting answer to our prayer is confirmed in Jesus’ statement in Matthew 7:9-11, “Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?  Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” Are you still in doubt if prayer will work for you? God cannot lie, and He does not waste word. Prayer works.
How we keep our heart helps to persevere and wait for answer to our prayer. The word encourages us to pray and not lose heart just as mentioned in the Parable of the Persistent widow. (Luke 18:1-8) Prayer is calling on God. We serve God that answers. He is the same yesterday and forever. David testified about calling on God, “I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies.” (2 Samuel 22:4) A believer’s failure to call on God when there is a need to call on God is the evidence of excusing God from extending His deliverance and preservation. Apostle Paul, a giant in the hand of God knows better not to excuse God from his life when he prayed, “And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly Kingdom. To Him is glory forever and ever, Amen!” (2 Timothy 4:18) Call God by His name, His name is a strong tower where there is deliverance and preservation for a true believer in the name of Jesus. God alone is the Living God; consistently look up to God without looking out for man’s answer for your question. Man will fail but God alone is not a failure. Power for deliverance and preservation belongs to God.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace of God to keep you waiting for God’s visitation.

FAITH CAPSULE: At God’s appointed time, spirit that is not of God shall be exposed

Acts 16

What do you possess and yet to be identified? Who are you following or who are you leading in the name of seeking God? It is written, “…a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling.  This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” And this she did for many days…” (Acts 16:16-18) A certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination followed the servant of God Apostle Paul for many days. Today, many possessed ones are claiming to be a believer on every ground of worshiping God or leading many acclaimed believers in the name of God. If one with possessed spirit of divination followed Apostle Paul for days, apostles of today will have a possessed spirit divination that is following without been identified.
Who are you following or who is following you without being identified of what spirit is possessed? The certain slave girl with possession of spirit of divination was not quiet but followed Paul crying out testifying that Paul and his team were the servants of the Most High God.  Imagine the certain slave girl operated on a mission field with God’s general (Paul the Apostle of God). It can be agreed that today there must be many of the certain slave girls in different ground of worship deceiving to mislead believer of God.
Who are you before God? Religious leaders such as pastors, prophets, apostles, usher, choir, deacons and all kinds of leadership or non-leadership in positions are not excused to be possessing spirits which is not of God. God cannot be deceived neither can He be mocked. At God’s appointed time, spirit that is not of God shall be exposed outside or inside of acclaimed believers. At appointed time, Paul identified the certain slave possessed with a spirit of divination.
When Paul eventually turned to the certain slave girl, deliverance from the spirit of divination was executed. Today, it is important for believers to abstain or be very careful not to be committed to any man in the name of Jesus. Jesus, our Lord and savior, the One whom we are to follow demonstrated not to commit to man. Also warning word of God is declared for man’s understanding as stated, “Jesus did not commit Himself to them because He knew all men.” (John 2:24) Take to the examples of Jesus in the word of God and let there be no reason for ignorant of the devices of the evil ones. True believer of God should not become a victim of evil agenda. Many are singing the song of salvation; preaching or reaching to many but they are assigned agent of the evil.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace of God to open the eyes of understanding and not be a victim of the evil.

FAITH CAPSULE: It is never too late to turn back from despising God’s word.

Numbers 20:1-13

The word of God is to teach man if man will pay attention to the word of God to learn and do as it is written. Truly, the word of God is true to perform and perfect in the life of man that will do according to God’s word. Psalm 103:7 recorded, “He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the children of Israel.” For a true believer of God, there is no failure for direction in God’s ways. His acts are the revelation of His power which testifies that those that keep His testimonies shall diligently seek God. To be living life by God’s direction is seeking God diligently to arrive at God’s promise for man.
God repeatedly made His ways known to Moses. However, he could only see the promised land but not step on the Promised Land. Moses’ failure to hallow God resulted for him to short grace of God when he saw and not step on the Promised Land. Romans 3:23 is true as stated, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” When Moses was commanded by God to speak to rock for water provision, he struck the rock twice (Numbers 20:11-12) Man’s attention with no doubt should constantly give self to the word of God. Answering as a religious leader is not enough as excuse not to do as directed by God. The grace of God made Moses to see but not step on the promised land.
The acts of God were in the face of the Israelites to believe and rest in the promise of God yet, the Israelites repeatedly disregard the word of God and failed to see or stepped on the promised Land.
The Israelites were privileged to see acts of God which was the evidence of God’s power before and during the days in the wilderness journey. Israelites saw the firstborn of all the Egyptian masters died while their firstborns were safe. Israelites saw the Red Sea open with dry land as a passage to escape from Egyptians’ wicked hand. Despite the evidence of God’s power in His acts before the Israelites, all Israelites who left Egypt with age twenty and above did not arrive at Promised Land. Man should not despise God’s word for no reason. Proverbs 13:13 warned “He who despises the word will be destroyed, but he who fears the commandment will be rewarded.” (Proverbs 13:13) Caleb and Joshua were the only ones that did not despised the word of God. Both Caleb and Joshua did not fail to keep their faith to keep God’s acts which gave them direction.
It is never too late to turn back from despising God’s word. Turn aside to God, He is the Unchanging Changer to change your situation for His glory upon your life. Continually give self to the word of God!

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace of God to keep you not to fail in the journey of life.

FAITH CAPSULE: With distance from the word of God man will be open to false conception.

Jeremiah 2

When man is in a distance position from God will be close to something that is not of God. Consciously or consciously are you in a distance position from God or in a close position to God? Taking to a distance position from God is far from the word of God. With distance from the word of God man will be open to false conception or notion. Taking to a distance position from God is walking far from the word that can order the steps of man in right direction. To walk far from God will lead to falling and failure. The word of God is God. Taking to a distance position is not jealous God wants from man but pleases the devil. Whenever man does not acknowledge God for what He has done there will be no heart that is centered to God closely. To be open to false conception is engaging to idols.
God spoke through Jeremiah to the children of Israel, “…What injustice have your fathers found in Me, that they have gone far from Me, have followed idols, and have become idolaters? Neither did they say, ‘Where is the LORD, who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, Who led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and pits, through a land of drought and the shadow of death, through a land that no one crossed and where no one dwelt?’”  (Jeremiah 2:4-6) It is important to constantly meditate and know it that God is a jealous God. Giving Him continuous attention by identifying Him as He who saw you through in the past and acknowledging Him for the present is important. At the time He was speaking through Jeremiah, the children of Israel had failed to do right by not identifying Him for the past and not acknowledging Him for the present.
When man takes a distance position from the word of God, rebellious act will take charge in the life of man before God. God wants man to hear and receive His word to heart. God said to Ezekiel, “Son of man, receive into your heart all My words that I speak to you, and hear with your ears.” (Ezekiel 3:10) Evidently, the word of God is directed to go to the heart of man with opened ear for the word of God. The point here is, give attention to the word of God by allowing your ear to give preference to the word of God. With attention in place for the word to enter, seeing in the word to gain direction shall become man’s portion. Find time to attend and listen to the word of God; gain understanding and begin to see and receive direction from God. Taking a close position to God is only way live by His direction.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to gain and maintain a close position in the word of God.

FAITH CAPSULE: Watch out never look outside of God’s direction.

1 Samuel 13

Looking away from God is taking a position away from God. It is a wrong decision not to be in position for God. Life is a journey taking position outside of God will terminate man’s journey. Terah, the father of Abraham must have looked away from God in his journey and not arrive at his expected end of journey. The bible recorded, “Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. But when they came to Harran, they settled there.” (Genesis 11:31) Abraham’s father (Terah) must have a reason to engage journey to. However, Terah did not live to arrive at Canaan because he decided to settle in Harran where he later died. Why are you looking away from arriving at expected? Terah looked away from getting to Canaan when God called Abraham to Canaan. In the journey of Abraham, he did not look away from God’s calling on him to Canaan. Looking away from God is not focusing on God.
Turning away from God’s direction is looking away from God. Lot’s wife turned away from God’s direction for her journey of deliverance into journey of self-destruction. When it was time for God to judge Sodom and Gomorrah, He called Lot and his house out of a pending destruction, “As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!” (Genesis 19:17) Condition for escape was not only to flee but also not to look back. However, Lot’s wife made a wrong decision to look back against the word of God and she became permanently terminated. The word recorded, “But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.” (Genesis 19:26)
Making decision that is based on what seems right in the place of God’s direction is a set for self-destruction. Proverbs 14:12 buttressed, “There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.” Let you decision be rooted in the word of God and be a victim of self-decision.
King Saul’s decision was based on what seemed right to himself to disobey God’s command. In a war against Philistines, Saul disobeyed Samuel’s direction for him to wait for burnt offering on the seventh day. Before Samuel’s appointed time, “…the Israelites saw that their situation was critical and that their army was hard pressed, they hid in caves and thickets…” (1Samuel 13:6) Saul reacted to the challenge and made a wrong decision by offering the burnt offering which was against the command of God. Saul could not wait for Samuel’s appointed time to violate the word of God. Watch out never look outside of God’s direction.

Prayer for today: Ask God to enable you to remain focus on His direction all the days He has given you.