Faith capsule: Every move without involving God will revolve to failure.

2 Chronicles 18

Gaining understanding and knowing what God wants for one keeps one in line with God’s agenda in life. When a man is moved by what he wants and not by what the Lord wants for him, that man will be removed from where God wants him to be. There is place of God for each and in order to avoid sudden or untimely death, no man should remove self from the place of God. God has put all that it takes for man to be saved in place for any man that will remain in God’s place regardless of the enemies plan.
David wanted to rescue his wives, his follower’s wives, sons, daughters that were taken refuge by the Amalekites who invaded where David and his people were located. By virtue of the pressure for the need to rescue his follower’s people, he could not make any move without asking God for direction. The bible described David’s situation stating, “Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” (1 Samuel 30:6) Despite the challenges before him, he could not rush to move on his own without inquiring from God for direction. David took it before God, “David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?” And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.” (1 Samuel 30:8) David made move after having inquired from God. He pursued and overtook his enemy because he was able to make his move based on God’s response to his enquiry.
Are you on the verge of making a move without carrying God along? Every move without involving God will revolve to failure. By man’s understanding, it might seem that one has been getting away without involving God. However, it is important to hear now and not take to one’s own move but God’s direction.
One’s with their mind made up before inquiring for God’s direction do not always listen for the right direction. Once, King Ahab of Judah was set for a confrontational war. Ahab sought the support of Jehoshaphat the king of Israel. Jehoshaphat agreed to go but with condition to inquire from God. Before calling on the prophet Micaiah, Ahab despised the prophet claiming that he never prophesize good concerning him. At the insistence of Jehoshaphat, Micaiah spoke as from God, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd. And the Lord said, ‘These have no master. Let each return to his house in peace.’” (2 Chronicles 18:16) Ahab rejected God’s prophetic message which was inquired and he did not return from the battle. As a result of Ahab’s move, Ahab was removed from where God wants him to be.

Prayer for today: Ask that God will keep you from every way of disobedience to His direction.

Faith Capsule: Hear and see in His sayings.

Acts 9: 1-22

It is written, “The hearing ear and seeing eye, the Lord has made them both.” (Proverbs 20:12) He is the maker of all. To hear and see in His word enables man to enter the plan of God for one’s life. Apparently, many does have ear and not able to hear and many does have eye and not able to see. Jeremiah 13:15 identified the reason for having ear and not able to hear and see, “Hear and give ear do not be proud for the Lord has spoken.” (Jeremiah 13:15) Pride denies man from not hearing and seeing in God. Are you aware of the need to always engage self in hearing and seeing in His word?
Job was a man identified by God as blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil. (Job 1:1) He experienced unimaginable challenges in the hand of Satan because God allowed it. In all of his challenges he did not curse God when his wife suggested he should curse God. Bible recorded in Job 2:9, “Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!”Job rejected his wife suggestion stating, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.” (Job 2:10) By the testimony of Job, it is possible that he heard from God but could not see what was ahead of him during his challenging times. Job testified, “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You.”(Job 42:5) In the journey of faith, it is important to be able to hear and see. To hear and not be able to see can deny man from living to the fulfillment of God’s calling or it is possible to cause delay which often leads to one being denied from living to fulfill God’s calling .
For one to fully answer to God’s calling or to experience God’s purpose in the journey of life, one must be able to give ear and hear; to give eye and see in the word which sounds in one’s direction. Saul (Apostle Paul) heard and saw before moving forward into his divine assignment. After all his experience on the way with the Way, he became confirmed to the apostle by Barnabas word, “But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. And he declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus.”(Acts 9:27) Paul saw and he heard from the Lord before he was confirmed. Paul saw and knew how to go because he heard His sayings and it did not depart from his eyes.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace to always hear and see in His word.

Faith Capsule: Stand still without doubt and see victory.

2 Chronicles 20

God is consistent to deliver, He is perfect to perform. God will remember to favor and He will visit with salvation. He has never failed and He will not fail. God is the same yesterday and forever. He is a merciful God. Pharaoh could not let go the Israelites when he pursued them to the Red Sea. Exodus 14:10 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.” Moses, God ordained spoke, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever.” (Exodus 14:13)
King Jehoshaphat was faced with war against Moab and Ammon. As a result, “King Jehoshaphat feared and set himself to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah” (2 Chronicles 20:3). In his prayers, he reminded God concerning the works of God’s hand, then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel son of Zechariah God He gave His word of promise in 2 Chronicles 20:17, “You will not need to fight in this battle, position yourselves, standstill 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.”
Without doubt, knowing that God is the same yesterday and forever, knowing that He is not a partial God and knowing that deliverance belongs to God, go and stand still and begin to see and celebrate what you see. In the above cases, the solution to engage all that represents Pharaoh in your life (challenges that will not give up on you) is to “stand still and see.” Stand still without doubt and see victory. It worked for Jehoshaphat and the Israelites; it worked for the Israelites against Pharaoh. See and know that it shall work for you. See victory when is yet at hand. Know that what you see determines what you receive and what you receive is what you become. Stand still, see and become a winner.
According to Moses, the Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace. Can you see it that way? For Jehoshaphat and the Israelites, they engaged praise worship. It is written that when they began to “sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushes against the people of Ammon and Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated” (2 Chronicles 20:22). How else can you get it? The Word of God is true and if you will see in His word, you will be delivered.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to stand still and see victory where enemy is forcing.

Faith Capsule: Why not adapt to positive communication instead of complaining?

Numbers 14

After the report of the spies, that went to spy out the Promised land, the children of Israel complained, and God responded to their complain stating, “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.” (Numbers 14:27-28)
By virtue of God’s response in the verses above, it is clear that:
–God is a longsuffering God. He is a God that bears long with our iniquities. 2 Peter 3:9 buttressed, “but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” Complaining instead of complementing God is evil. It does not settle well with God. Just as He hears complain so He hears every of our communication. Why not adapt to positive communication instead of complaining? Pharaoh and his men could not stop the Israelites from coming out of bondage; the Red Sea failed to deny them passage; wall of Jericho crumbled for them to pass through but complain was able to terminate them from getting to the Promised Land.
–We must know and be very much aware that God hears every of our conversation. He claimed to have heard the complaints of the Israelites. God hears us more than we know it. The word of God warned, “Understand, you senseless among the people; and you fools, when will you be wise? He who planted the ear, shall He not hear? He who formed the eye, shall He not see? He who instructs the nations, shall He not correct, He who teaches man knowledge? The Lord knows the thoughts of man, that they are futile.” (Psalm 94:8-11) This should make us to know that we cannot afford to be careless in our communications (thought, word, actions) towards God.
–Also, it is proven that God is ever consistent with His word. Whatever He says He will do is a done deal. He laid out consequences of their foolishness (complaint) and it all came to pass. Indeed, as He promised, all that complained, from twenty years old and above could not get to the Promised Land.
When we complain against God, it sends a clear message that we do not trust God. As a result of our lack of trust, suffering the consequences of lack of trust prevails. Complain will cause major delay or deny man from the blessings of breakthrough. The children of Israel constantly complained, both directly and indirectly, against God. The result was their stagnation and termination in the wilderness.

Prayer for today: Ask God for total deliverance from conscious and unconscious deliverance complaining against God.

Faith Capsule: Desire to seek the Lord and dwell in the house of the Lord.

Psalm 27

In the journey of life it is the Spirit of God that will see man through and not miss it when is time to be counted before God. No matter what man determines, it only become established when it is backed by the Spirit of God. The book of 1 Samuel 2:9 buttressed, “He will guard the feet of His saints, but the wicked shall be silent in darkness. “For by strength no man shall prevail.”
It is good to desire because when man’s desire genuinely focuses on God, God will deposit and make desire become a manifestation. David stated, “One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord All the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, And to inquire in His temple.” (Psalm 27:4) Desire and do not just determine so that the Lord will deposit what it takes for your determination to be manifested.
Is it your desire to seek the Lord and be able to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of your life to behold the beauty of the Lord all the days of your life, it is not impossible. The word of God commands 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)
Through the pages of the scripture, there are evidences of where men have taken to determination but the end result was a failure. However, this is not a suggestion that man should not have determination but to make it clear that man’s desire by looking up to God will always prevail. Peter was too determined to reject the Lord’s revelation concerning his denying Jesus. Mark 14: 29-31, “Peter said to Him, “Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be.” 30 Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” 31 But he spoke more vehemently, “If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” And they all said likewise.” Peter was determined that He will not stumble but it was clear to Jesus what was going to happen. Peter stumbled and he denied Jesus. Are you facing challenging reasons that calls for God’s outstretch hand? Do not forget that it is not by determination but by the Spirit of God.

Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace to know and to dwell in His house.