FAITH CAPSULE: Failure not to ask and wait or watch and pray leads to missing God’s attention.

2 Chronicles 20

Praying is asking, watching is waiting. Elijah killed the prophets of Baals and needed to run from Jezebel. Elijah prayed and watched by asking from God and patiently waited for revelation. In 1 Kings 19:4, Elijah prayed as recorded, “And he prayed that he might die, and said, “It is enough! Now, Lord, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!” After praying he waited by watching for the command of God which said to him, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind…” (1 Kings 19:11) The testimony of watching and praying (asking and waiting) is evident in Elijah. Seeking God in times of challenging will replace fear by faith. Elijah watched and prayed (asked and waited) for direction that elevated him above the threat of Jezebel. When the fear of confronting challenge leads man to seek another man, disappointment answers.
Man that seeks God’s face by watching and praying (asking and waiting) is the man that takes a position of undeniable victory. King Jehoshaphat another example sought God by praying while watching for God’s intervention during confronting challenge. Jehoshaphat prayed to God and got response as stated, “Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. Tomorrow go down against them. They will surely come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the brook before the Wilderness of Jeruel. 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 20:15-17) Watching and praying to God is seeking for direction. It is important to understand and know that your challenge is not beyond God.
Fear made Jehoshaphat watched and prayed (asked and waited) as God revealed victory. The fear of Jehoshaphat led to a faithful victory because the Lord fought the battle on behalf of the children of Israel. It is written, “And the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries when they heard that the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel. Then the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest all around.”(2Chronicles 20:29-30) Take your challenge to God for Him to fight on your behalf.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace of asking and waiting for God’s intervention in all areas of life.

FAITH CAPSULE: Do not be a failure but engage watching and prayer.

1 Peter 4

Jesus gave the command that keeps us to dwell and abide under the shadow of the Almighty by stating, watch and pray. Without watching and praying the tempter, the orchestration of sin lies at the door and his desire is for man to miss out of dwelling and abiding in the secret place of the Most High God.
Watching and praying will: Keep believers from temptation and keep man in escape route and be counted by God.
Watching and praying keeps believer from temptation: At Jesus’ prayer at Gethsemane, He repeatedly encouraged His disciples to be awake and not give to sleep. The key of His encouragement to engage watch and prayer stated, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41) Temptation is a force which brings man out of the shadow of deliverance and preservation. Temptation’s purpose is to sweep man off when watching and praying is not in place. Temptation makes man a victim of failure not to be dwelling and abiding in the shadow of God. As a believer, are you sleeping on the ground which calls for man to be awake? Be awake, be in the word, and keep focus in praying to God.
Watching and praying will keep man in the escape route and be counted:
Many are numbered but not all shall be counted if misplaced from dwelling and abiding in His shadow. Jesus pointed out the importance of watching, “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 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 21:34-36) Do not be a failure but engage watching and prayer. Jesus said it all about the importance of watching and praying as the route of escape of man.
Watching without praying or praying without watching cannot be separated. When Jesus was here in His physical, at the time of His ministry, He repeatedly emphasized the importance of watching and praying which keeps man to remain dwelling and abiding in the hand of the Almighty God.
Today, we are to pay attention by watching and praying according to Jesus and as other pages of the bible mentioned. Ephesians 6:18 recorded, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.” 1Peter 4:7-8 stated, “But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers.” Watch and pray!

Prayer for today: Lift up voice and ask God for the grace of watching and praying.

FAITH CAPSULE: As a believer, see your delay as deliverance on the way.

Exodus 32:1-14, Philippians 4

As a believer of God, in your journey of life are you engaging affliction? Is it delay that is waging challenges to deny expectation? The encouraging word of God is the fuel of transportation for a believer in the journey of life to expected end. Word encourages, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.” (Psalm 34:19) Trusting and hoping the word of God is to know that a delay in manifestation of expectation is not a denial. It is clear that delay or other kind of challenge is eminent but God is faithful to fulfill His promise of deliverance for true believer of His word. Ignoring the occurrence of delay in any area of journey life will block out doubt and the idea of stepping out of the journey right track. Knowing God you believe with a consistent meditation on His testimonies will add up favorably when it seems that the road has been cut off. Also, take to the word that states, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;  and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7)
The Israelites experienced delay but resulted to complaint and worry. The bible recorded, “Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered together to Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make us gods that shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” (Exodus 32:1) The children of Israel knew God’s miracle through Moses. It was sure that God could not abandon them, yet they gave into an unnecessary worry that did not denied them. As a result of Moses’ delay from coming down from the mountain, an unholy gathering took over from holy gathering. The Israelite’s unnecessary worry caused action of seeing delay and turned them to seek another god.
Some delays are necessary especially when God is the beginning of such a journey. Also, there are some places you have started, but delay has made it look like you are wasting out. Today, wait on God you can never be wasted. Some delays are not of failure, but to actually make a way of getting to the expected end. Take a note that without faith, delay will turn man quickly out of the way of God’s word of deliverance. Allow God by taking all your delay to God in prayer.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the miracle of deliverance.

FAITH CAPSULE: Man with the choice not to know God becomes short of benefits encased in knowing God.

Psalm 142, Daniel 6

With commitment to be giving God regard will build relationship with God. David was giving regard to God. David had relationship with God. A man’s relationship with God is what determines the kind of communication with God. David by virtue of his relationship with God, his communication was evident in his communications with God like when he stated, “I cry out to the Lord with my voice; With my voice to the Lord I make my supplication. I pour out my complaint before Him; I declare before Him my trouble. (Psalm 142:1-2) A man that does not know God cannot have a special relationship of communication with God.
Relationship with God is the evidence of knowing God.
In life, personalizing God is from giving regard to God constantly. Personalizing God builds up relationship with God. Relationship with God is an evidence of how much man knows God. Is it your desire to know God? God has given what it takes for man to be knowledgeable about Him. However, having knowledge of God is a choice and not by force. With the choice to know God is to be full of the knowledge of God and not lack knowledge of God. Just like David, Daniel had the knowledge of God. The bible testified about Daniel stating that those who know their God shall do exploit. (Daniel 11:32) Truly Daniel did exploit when he lived as an overcomer through four different unbelieving kings that could hurt or terminate his life. Daniel constantly gave regard to God. In captivity, he did not complain but he purposed in his heart not to defile himself with what is not of God. (Daniel 1:8) Daniel a man of God gave regard to God with his custom prayer approach to God. (Daniel 6:10) David, Daniel lived life as example of giving regard to God and knew God.
A man with the choice not to know God becomes short of benefit that is encased in knowing good gracious God. To lack knowledge of God is what makes man a vessel that perishes. The word of God stated it clearly, “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. Hosea 4:6
Giving regard to God is very crucial to navigate through the wicked word. Give God regard and not be like ones that do not regard God. The bible cautioned, “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 Psalm 28:5.
Give God all your regard; become built in Him for your inheritance among the sanctified.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to live a life of relationship with God.

FAITH CAPSULE: Do not be hypocrite but live life to give God regard constantly.

Matthew 6

Seeking God is giving regard to God that is jealous. Exodus 34:14 identified God stating, “For you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.” God also said in His commandment, “For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God…” God desires, He deserves and He request from us to live life by giving Him regard with all our heart. Giving God regard at every breath is worthy as Psalm 150:6 stated, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.” Giving regard to God demands consistency not a casual approach. Giving regard to God can be likened to sowing and expecting to reap. How man sow determines what man reaps. In life, regardless how banana and plantain looks alike, it is not possible to sow banana and expects to reap plantain.
To fear God is to love God, to fear God is to seek God by giving Him constant regard. Deuteronomy 10:12 buttressed, “what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul” To fear God is giving regard to God, it is taken a position for being pitied by God as psalmist stated, “As a father pities his children, So the Lord pities those who fear Him.” (Psalm 103:13)
Giving regard to God can be described as thinking of God highly, giving God admiration and giving esteem to God. Giving regard to God is rooted in giving respect and honor to jealousy God. Jealousy God demands attention from His creation. His works or the operation of His hands should never be looked over but be given attention. Psalm 28:5 pointed out what a failure to regard God is about, “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.” (Psalm 28:5)
Giving regard to God is to do good which pleases God. When we move to regard God is not only when we are pressed down by challenges of world. When we want to give regard to God is to reach Him for the goodness of His awesomeness. Among way of doing good to please God are:
Charitable deeds which please God; approaching God with prayer that is not hypocritical; fasting to God without reservation but to give regard to God. Doing such good as mentioned are not only engaged in time of challenging situation but give attention to God for His awesomeness. Doing good to please God should not to impress man but to press further in relationship with God. Do not be hypocrite but live life to give God regard constantly.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to live life of giving Him a worthy regard.