FAITH CAPSULE: Having faith is the courage to provoke God’s hand for deliverance.

Exodus 14

Romans 10:17 described faith; “…faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” When the word of God is received, embraced, retained by the hearer, it builds man up with courage. In life, courage is to shut fear down and open up faith in the life of man. Faith is what provokes the move of God’s, hand not fear. A paralytic man and four men provoked Jesus for healing miracle. The bible recorded, “And again He entered Capernaum after some days, and it was heard that He was in the house.  Immediately many gathered together, so that there was no longer room to receive them, not even near the door. And He preached the word to them. Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who was carried by four men. And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed on which the paralytic was lying.” (Mark 2:1-4) The faith in the life of the paralytic man and his four helpers was not hidden but was glaring to Jesus. Faith that was engaged by the paralytic man and four men was a see-able faith; it was a demonstration of strength and courage. Faith is action to provoke the hand of God for healing deliverance. Mark 2:5 recorded, “When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” Demonstrating faith demands strength and courage. On a ground where doubt and mixed-multitude are in place, man must be strong and very courageous to observe and do according to the word of God without doubt. The faith demonstration of the paralytic man was with strength and courage and it provoked Jesus’ response, “I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.” ^“Immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went out in the presence of them all, so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”” (Mark 2:11-12) Evidently, being strong and courageous in the face of undeniable challenge or overwhelming pressure will make a believer prevail. The paralytic man and his men exercised faith but the Israelites engaged fear. At the crossing of the Red Sea, the children of Israel demonstrated great fear when Pharaoh and his force drew near to them. The Bible recorded, “And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to the Lord. Then they said to Moses, “Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt?” (Exodus 14:10-11)
Moses intervened on behalf of the Israelites’ deliverance before God. To be strong in the Lord is the way to overcome fear.

Prayer for today: Ask for the fear of God to reign over your life.

FAITH CAPSULE: God alone is a Father God for man but not a god father.

Psalm 8, John 1:1-18,

Jesus is the will of God for us to live and have life abundantly. Jesus is the evidence of God’s caring for man. God is such a caring Father God that is mindful of man. David was flabbergasted by the caring of Father God when he questioned God’s caring as stated, “What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor. You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet.” (Psalm 8:4-6) Truly and indeed God alone created man without assigning any part of man’s body to a contractor. Wonderfully, with care, God alone created man. Psalmist buttressed, “I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.” (Psalm 139:14) God cares for man to wonderfully made man.
God alone is a Father God for man but not a god father. He is not an authoritarian nor a dictator but a creator. He is a creator whose word is perfect. Father God is the Commanding commander that is fully in charge with goodness and mercy in position for man. God is the Healing healer; He is an Unchanging changer that does not overlook and not care for man. By virtue of His testimonies He has demonstrated many times, He is still demonstrating as a Longsuffering God. Without any iota of doubt, Father God is the only Almighty Creator with loving care for man. The Bible declares in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” God is concerned for man but if man cannot concur with His concern for man, condemnation will answer for man.
God cares so much for man to live life more abundantly. Jesus clearly stated when He declared to us, “…I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10) Are you aware of God’s care for you? How are you living in order to have the life that He has come to give? From today, know it and begin to live according to the will of Father God; the Lord of Host; the Ancient of days and the only God that inhabits eternity. Jesus is the will of God for man. To live according to His will is to fear Him. To fear God is to live by every word of God. Before the presence of the caring Father God, man should live life abundantly in the will of Father God with commitment to His word.

 Prayer for today: Ask for the grace of God to live life fully in His will.

FAITH CAPSULE: Praising God with understanding is a weapon for victory.

2 Chronicles 20

Praising God with understanding is a weapon for victory. Praising God, not multitude will deliver victory in the face of battle. Multitude is not a victory assurance. Are you counting on multitude for your battle? Is it high numbers that have risen against you?
Once, King Jehoshaphat of Judah was confronted by a battle that was bigger than what he could handle. Jehoshaphat received a message of fear, “A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea, from Syria; and they are in Hazazon Tamar” (which is En Gedi). And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.” (2 Chronicles 20:2-3) The fear of the wicked world of Jehoshaphat drove him to seek God for deliverance from the multitude before him. Who are you seeking in the wicked of your word? Truly, daily is a battle ground. Daily battle comes in multitude which can be powerful more for man but with God victory is certain. Without doubt, seeking God by trusting and hoping in Him will provoke Him to fight believer’s battles.
Jehoshaphat’s fear to seek God instead of seeking man or multitude as a message came for him stating, “You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the LORD, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem! Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the LORD is with you.” (2 Chronicles 20:17) With Jehoshaphat, taking a position was engaging praise with understanding before God. Praising God with understanding brings man to the presence God where victory becomes undeniable. Jehoshaphat gained confidence by standing still as he prepared his people for the battle.
2 Chronicles 20:21-22, recorded the plans of Jehoshaphat as stated, “And when he had consulted with people, he appointed those who should sing to the LORD, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying: Praise the LORD For His mercy endures forever. Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated.” Jehoshaphat with fear which drove him to God delivered to him undeniable victory. Daily battle will come but plan to gain and maintain the presence of God through praising God with understanding. He is God that enthroned in the praises of His people. Psalm 22:3 buttressed, “But you are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel.” Praise Him and let victory become yours today in Jesus name. Get the understanding to be praising God as it is written, “For God is the King of all the earth; Sing praises with understanding.”

Prayer for today: Ask God to fill you with understanding to seek Him.

FAITH CAPSULE: Watching and praying must be a priority in this wicked world.

1 Peter 4

Jesus paid price on the Calvary for us to be above and not be a victim of wicked world. Jesus repeatedly revealed to us that watching and praying but not sleeping carelessly is our must. Sleep can only sink but not position man as overcomer.
It is important to understand and know that a non-praying believer is a sleeping believer. The Bible recorded, “Then He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Mark 14:37-38) The disciples could not stay up in prayer but went down sleeping. Jesus attempted to keep His disciples up in praying and watching. Twice, Jesus could not keep them awake as it is written, “Then He came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough! The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.” (Mark 14:41-42) The Bible is not a story but a life with sustaining dosage for anyone that will take and use. In life, many become a victim of wickedness when sleeping overrides watching and praying.
As a believer, it is time to be awake and be spiritually alert. To be awake and be alert is to be on guard watching and praying. Few scriptural verses emphasized on the need to watch and pray stating, “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass and to stand before the Son of Man.” (Luke 21:36) It is written in Ephesians 6:18, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.” The first book of Peter could not be completed without stating, “But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers.” (1 Peter 4:7) The only agent that can take a man away from watching and praying is sleep. Jesus warned his disciples of this very problem when they gave into sleep instead of watching as He prayed. This took place while Jesus was praying in the garden when His time of arrest was near.
Are you watching and praying? As an acclaimed believer, watching and praying must be a priority in this wicked world. Jesus has played His role on our behalf the Calvary to give life abundantly. Be conversant waiting on the Lord by watching and praying. As a believer, you have a role to play because the wicked one’s road leads to you. Make a must to become awake in the place of sleeping.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace to be awake watching and praying not to be a victim of this wicked world.

FAITH CAPSULE: In your challenging fear is your storm.

Psalm 34

Faith raises but fear sinks. Fear is the orchestration of the devil. Fear the work of devil is to sink man that looks not in the word of God which is the source of faith. Job, a great man of God testified, “For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me, and what I dreaded has happened to me.” (Job 3:25) The challenging testimony of Job was orchestrated by the devil. Job was testified by God, “…Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?” (Job 1:8)
Without doubt, fear will always come with challenge but having faith should be in place knowing that, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.” (Psalm 34:19) Imagine Job, a man of great stature in the hand of God with challenges of fear attempting to reduce him? Any man with reasons of challenging fears should have confidence to trust and hope in the word of God for deliverance from challenges orchestrated by the devil.
Just like Job, God also testified David through Samuel, “…The LORD has sought for Himself a man after His own heart…” (1 Samuel 13:14) Several times David was reduced into fear but he remained trust and hope in God by encouraging himself by the word of God. In one of David’s testimony, he stated, “My enemies would hound me all day, for there are many who fight against me, O Most High. Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me? (Psalm 56:2-4) Despite enemies that were hounding David, fear could not sink him but faith repeatedly raised him up and above all his challenges. David trusted God; he was praising Him in His word. David constantly held onto the wondrous and unusual acts of God.
To ignore fear is to look into the word of God which is the source of faith. In the middle of storm, Peter was reduced to fear. When Jesus walked on the storm towards Peter and his disciples, Peter could not keep his focus to join Jesus walking on the storm. The bible recorded, “…And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!”” (Matthew 14:29-30) In the word of God there is faith for deliverance but looking into the face of fear there is a way to sink.
What is your storm? In your challenging fear is your storm. Ignore storm to embrace strength. David encouraged himself in the word of God and he stepped on his storm.

Prayer for today: Ask God to deliver you from the spirit of fear.