FAITH CAPSULE: What is the meaning of your name?

1 Chronicles 4

Maybe it is time for you to check the meaning of your name. Your living life might be answering to your name. What is the meaning of your name? The case of Jabez is an example of checking the meaning of his name to reverse irreversible challenges in his life. For Jabez, bible recorded, “Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested. (1 Chronicles 4:9-10)
Imagine Jabez, a God made to him to be honorable but his mother named him Jabez meaning pain. Answering as pain in the place of answering as an honored man of God is an error. Jabez came out of answering to a meaningless name, a name (Jabez) that prophesied pain over his life.
What is your name? Is your name setting you back from answering fully to the calling of God upon your life? Check it out! Check to change a negative name that you are answering to.
In your life journey, not long ago, you had all that it takes to live life and to live it well because everything was in place for you. Things have now changed compared to where you were then. In your case, help is not in place or in sight; hope dwindles; faith is failing; stagnation; living in shame and it just does not seem like there is a way out to where one as a believer wants to be. Does that sound like you? Above all, God is waiting for you to seek Him diligently and find your self-deliverance just like Jabez sought his solution for his self deliverance before God.  without any doubt, God is God. The Lord God is a good God and He has said in His word that His thoughts for us are peaceful and good. They are not of evil (Jeremiah 29:11) He is a wonderful God. Isaiah 55:8-9, For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.” Remember that and that will solve the whole pain in your life. The name of Jesus is what makes the difference. God made us in His image (Genesis 1:27). He that made us in His image has a name that is meaningful. His name is a name that transforms and in His name, there is power. As a creature in the image of God you should answer to a name that is meaningful; a name that is positive. With a positive meaningful name, Jabez answered as an honorable man created by God.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace of God to reverse irreversible in your life for His glory.

FAITH CAPSULE: Be a keeper of His temple by seeking Him diligently.

Genesis 3, Luke 19:45-48

It is written, “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16) For real, as a believer, do you not know that you are the temple (House) of God? What we claim to know and not do is the evidence of lack of knowledge or ignorance. If one truly knows, one will do exactly what is known. There is no excuse for disobedience but only consequence. Adam gave the best excuse before God and it failed to count before God. Adam did not ask God for a partner when God made him a partner. God’s partner for Adam (Eve) made Adam to violate God’s command. God wanted to know why Adam violated His command when Adam responded, “…the woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I hate.” (Genesis 3:12) Adam’s excuse was not enough to stop God from unleashing the consequence of Adam’s disobedience.
As regard to the temple of God (you) the bible states the consequence of not knowing to take care of the temple of God, “If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” (1 Corinthians 3:17) Are you defiling the temple of God in you? It is important for every believer to know keeping the temple in line with God’s way but not to only know about. Violating the temple can never have a reasonable excuse before God.
Jesus, by His word and action clearly demonstrated the intolerance against not keeping the temple in the way of God. Once, He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it. (Luke 19:45) In every area of life priority must be in a proper place. Whenever there is a misplacement of priority one is set for self-destruction. The people that were driven out by Jesus violated God by turning His temple to a business center where marketing of goods thrives. Among the identities of church today are the same as business center; converted to money gospel center where lying, deception, and manipulation thrives. Without any doubt, the place of seeking after God and the place of seeking after money does not complement each other.
Jesus declared how His temple (house) was violated, “My house is a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves” (Luke 19:46) Are you violating His temple or you are elevating His temple? Man can be deceived but God cannot be deceived. His temple (church) of today fits into same as den of thieves He pointed out in His days.
It is about time for acclaimed believer to pay attention to what takes place in their temple and not violate God in the temple.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace not to be a failure before Him.

FAITH CAPSULE: This day, why not begin to stick to the word of God in the pages of the bible?

Jeremiah 17

In this season, this day; this week; this month let it be that testimonies about what God has been doing in your life will be your way of life. In your life, abstain from complaining but to be giving compliments to God. Giving testimony of what God has done for you will provoke God to do more of His good in your life. Are you counting your negative challenges in the place of counting on God for your positives? In this new day for you begin to keep the testimonies of God and claim the blessings of keeping His testimonies. Psalm 119:2-3 buttressed, “Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with the whole heart! They also do no iniquity; They walk in His ways.” Today know and understand that keeping His testimonies will make you to seek Him with all your heart but not to be stranded with thoughts of your past challenges.
As a believer, you are not immune from experiencing challenges in your good doing. However, a good deed that is true and genuine before God cannot be altered for worse. It is also important to know that challenges will come, affliction will prevail but deliverance is certain. Psalm 34:19 encourages, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all.” God is faithful to His Word. God meant what He said and He will do all that He has promised to do. Without doubt, when testimonies of God are what you are keeping as your portion, from this day you will do no iniquity and walk in His ways as stated in Psalm 119:2-3.
In this season, why not begin to stick to the word of God in the pages of the bible? The Word of God is true and they are encouraging to those that will take heed to it. In looking back to where you have started and where you are, can you make a claim to have sincerely embarked and engaged yourself in doing good and not evil? It can never be too much in doing what is good; neither can it be too late to reap the fruitfulness of doing good. Be encouraged if you have been doing good in dealing with a wicked and desperate world. Jeremiah 17:9-10, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.” These two verses speak to encourage us. The Word that is directly from God has never failed and He will never be late in carrying out His Word.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace understanding and knowledge to take charge over your life.

FAITH CAPSULE: Following Him is in knowing Him not knowing about Him.

 1 John 2:1-6

Life is a race. How are you following through in this wicked world? As an acclaimed believer of Christ, going to church every Sunday; going to prayer meeting and bible study is not a ticket to make through this wicked world to heaven. In living life, how are you following Him? Claiming to be church active is truly journeying through the right track to heaven. However, it is clearly true that church can possibly be a passage to hell and not heaven. Yes, you possibly claim to be on the right track of following Him, but being on the right track is different from following through the rules of running the track. Indeed, it is possible to be on the right track and be trapped.
Life is a journey and living life can be compared to running race on a race track. In running a race on the track of life there are rules that should never be violated. Every acclaimed believer on the race track of life who fails to follow the rules of running race on the track of life is a trapped believer. 1 Corinthians 9:24 points out, “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.” The ones who run to receive prize are the ones who get to the expected end. Running the race of life is about knowing to follow Christ, the author and the finisher of our faith. (Hebrews 12:2)
What does it take to follow Him? Following Him is in knowing Him not knowing about Him. Knowing the Lord is not in determination or in our strength. Following Him is not in changing or running from one church to another church. Knowing to follow Him is in consistent obedience to His word. The book of 1 John 2:3-4 expressly stated what it means to follow Him, “Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in Him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.  He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.’” Walking truly in His word following Him truly; keeping self on a right track; moving as a candidate not to miss heaven. Engaging self in lying, deception and manipulating is setting self as a failure candidate for heaven. From today, walk or run the race of life according to the rule of running the race.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace of God’s to run the race of life and not miss from getting to the expected end.

FAITH CAPSULE: Spending time in His word is spending time in His presence.

Exodus 3

Jesus said, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.” (John 15:7) It is not enough to be fluent in His word if there is no abiding in His word. When you abide in Him you will be known in Him. The grace of God is sufficient, and it will make it possible to live the word of God. Whoever knows His name and call on His name shall be saved, and this salvation is not maybe or could-be salvation, it is certain salvation.
It is impossible to know the name of God if you don’t spend adequate time in His presence. Spending time in His word is spending time in His presence. Which of His Names do you know? Is it the name you have heard Him being called out by others that you know about or His Name that you have encountered in the pages of the Bible? For Moses to be able to execute the assignment he was called for, he went and inquired from Him about His name. God responded, “And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, the LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.” (Exodus 3: 14-15)
His name has not changed. His name will not change and His name will continue to make changes because His name is for all generations. Do you know Him? Are you known in Him? Call on His Name and you shall be saved. After Pharaoh had turned down Moses’ request the first time, Moses went back to God. God insisted and repeated His name to Moses as the only weapon that will bring forth result. Pharaoh, an agent of evil persisted and Moses persevered. Jesus’ parable of the importunate widow (Luke 18:1-8) is a demonstration of the need to persevere in calling when the answer is yet in our hand. God insisted, the devil resisted, but Moses persevered. Proverbs 18:10, “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.” Call on Him if you know Him and you are known in Him, His name will not fail you.

Prayer for today: Ask God to revive you in His righteousness.