Faith Capsule: Busy engagement disconnects man from God but word engagement connects man to God.

Psalm 14, Luke 10:38-42

It is a great privilege to have Jesus welcomed into one’s house but it is not enough if one is occupied with busy engagement. It is written, “Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.  And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word.” (Luke 10:38-39)
Martha welcomed Jesus, but was engaged with unreasonably service and could not receive from Jesus. Any service that takes a believer from receiving whenever Jesus is in the house is evidently an unreasonable service. While Martha was busy serving Jesus, Mary busy receiving all that matters, all which could build her up. Mary committed herself to the word of God. Welcoming Jesus into one’s house without committing to the word of God can be compared to buying a land and not converting it to a building. The word was in the house but Martha was not committed to the word because of her busy engagement.
Apostle Paul recommended, “So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.” (Acts 20:32) There is nothing wrong in serving the Lord, but so much is wrong when serving takes away the believer from receiving the word of God which builds man. Today many are busy serving in different areas but the word of God is not touching different areas of their lives. The bible recorded, “But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” (Luke 10:40) Martha recognized that her service was nothing but distraction was taking her away from what she needed to be getting from the Master. It is very possible that leaders can be impressed by service they observed in every server, but it is important to know that reasonable service counts more before the Master of all.
Martha realizing her deficit, decided to take her case to the Master, “And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.” (Luke 10:41) Worrying is not of the Lord; it is an evidence of anxiousness the opposite of worshiping the Lord. Jesus pointed out that Martha misplaced priority when He spoke to her, “But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:42) Busy engagement shall surely take away man from God. However, the word of God that is good will take man to where God wants for man.

Prayer for today: Ask God to deliver you from whatever is taking you away from God consciously or unconsciously.

Faith Capsule: Do not be afraid, disallow fear from raiding you.

Exodus 14

Whenever fear invades, confusion and making wrong, destructive decisions prevails. The invasion of fear into the life of King Saul caused him to entertain fear that eventually terminated his journey to having a fulfilled life. What is it that is granting fear access into your life? As an acclaimed believer that claims to love God, you can hold on to the truth in the word just like the Psalmist did by calling on God, “Look upon me and be merciful to me, as Your custom is toward those who love Your name.”(Psalm 119:132) Do you truly love His name? To love the name of God is to love God by obeying His command. In the mercy of God there is direction that keeps man from becoming a victim of taking wrong steps which disallow iniquity from having dominion over the life of man.
The book of 1 Samuel 28:4-5 documented the source of fear that derailed Saul in the track of living a fulfilled life to the glory of God stating, “Then the Philistines gathered together, and came and encamped at Shunem. So Saul gathered all Israel together, and they encamped at Gilboa. When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly.” Fear occupied because of what he saw. Are you looking in direction of a posing challenge or you have taken a position to only look up to God? King Saul paid attention to his confronting challenge and deny heaven from attending on his behalf.  Is there any reason for fear in your life today? Do not allow what you fear found you. Look up to God more through His word and deny fear. Job buttressed when he testified, “For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me, and what I dreaded has happened to me.” (Job 3:25) What is causing fear in your life? If you will begin to ignore every source of fear and turn to giving God all your attention, your challenge shall not overcome you.
The Israelites were redirected from beholding their enemy when Moses charged them, “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. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.” (Exodus 14:13-14) The word of God, the promise of God and the command of God yesterday is not different from today. Faith comes by hearing of the word and fear comes by denying the word of God. Pay attention to the word and your world will turn around for His glory.

Prayer for today: Ask that every generating force of fear be permanently denied in your life.

Faith Capsule: Love is a costly sacrifice.

Genesis 22

1 John 5:3 stated, “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments.”Keeping God’s command is obeying and seeking God. It is sacrifice to keep His command and it means loving God. Sacrifice is not cheap but costly to give. King David once stated in 2 Samuel 24:24, “No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God with that which costs me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.”” King David was responding to Araunah who had offered him a free land for sacrifice to God. The sacrifice was meant to deliver the children of Israel from death that was caused by David’s census. It was a clear demonstration of what a costly sacrifice before God should be. To consciously engage a costly sacrifice is a proven mark of love for God.
God did not just ask for love rather He gave us a standard of acceptable love when He stated in Deuteronomy 6:5, “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.” To love God means to give Him our all. Those that gave Him all were able to live a fulfilled life and accomplish great exploits to the glory of God.
Abraham demonstrated his love obeying God. Abraham was seventy five years old when he was called out to unknown land and he left as commanded by God. Abraham’s strongest demonstration of his love for God emerged after the birth of his son Isaac. God said to Abraham, “…take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” (Genesis 22:2) God’s repeated emphasis on Isaac’s status to Abraham could not discourage Abraham. He loved God with all his heart when he followed through and obeyed the instructions of God. A three day journey to sacrificial ground was not enough to dissuade Abraham to change his love from God. Genesis 22:4 stated, “Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off.”  Despite all, he continued because he loved God with all his strength.
Abraham love God with all his soul when he carried out the sacrifice in his heart. “Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.” (Genesis 22:10) Abraham’s attempt called for heaven’s attention and the angel called on Abraham, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”(Genesis 22:12) Abraham feared God. To love God is to fear God.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace to know and to love God with all your being.

Faith Capsule: Loving God is fulfilling.

1John 3

Know God to love Him. The knowledge of God is to love and know Him. It is not possible to love God which you do not know. Loving God cannot happen without knowing God. No man is born with the knowledge of God. By His divine grace and spending time in the word of God is the major route to knowing Him. Determination to love God will only lead to one’s termination and failure in the journey of life. It was out of love for Jesus that made Peter determined and declared, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.” (Luke 22:33) With the word of mouth, Peter declared his love for Jesus while he was determined to love Jesus with all his heart, strength, and soul. Often time word is easier said than done. Jesus by virtue of Him knowing man and all things said to Peter in His conversation with Peter, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.” (Luke 22:34) Peter determined not to deny Jesus but he did just as it was predicted by Jesus. Determination will fail but when we prayerfully desire God will deposit.
God is not a slave master but a saving master who will not force Himself onto us to love Him. God is the one that will make us to love Him if we are willing to. He will also help us when we continually desire for Him. David desired for the Lord when he 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)
Loving God is fulfilling. This what will happen to every believer that Love Him to fear Him by fully obeying His word and not just by the word of mouth, ““And the LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them.” (Deuteronomy 28:13)
It is important to personalize Deuteronomy 30:6 and prayerfully engage it by meditating day and night as we go in all of our ways in the course of the days ahead of us by His grace, “And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.”

Prayer for today: Ask God to circumcise your heart. Ask from the depth of your heart the grace to love God.

Faith Capsule: Do not allow pride to intercept your miracle breakthrough.

2 Kings 5

Naaman was a remarkable figure. All of Naaman’s great remarks were in the eyes of his master and not in the eyes of God. Just like Naaman, are you a man of great remarks in the eyes of your pastor and among brethren? How do you fare in the eyes of God? What you are in the eyes of God is that which matters. Naaman was described as, “…commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the LORD had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper.” (2kings 5:1)  At the time he came to Elisha he did not know God and his great exploits was to himself and his people.
In the life of Naaman, there was a “but” and his but was leprosy. Naaman needed a cleansing that would get him to know God. What is the “but” in your life that needs the kind of cleansing that will cause you to know God and not just know about God? The “but” in Naaman’s life that needed to be cleansed was leprosy on the outside that is rooted in pride. The pride in the life of Naaman was exceedingly destructive. The pride in his life was not visible compared to the leprosy. Pride is the opposite of humility; pride kills; pride does not give life and pride goes before destruction. At the juncture of Naaman’s healing, “… Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.” But Naaman became furious, and went away and said, “Indeed, I said to myself, ‘He will surely come out to me, and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leprosy.’” (2 Kings 5:10-11) The pride inside Naaman almost denied him his healing when he became furious and left in rage. Pride is like a treat with many branches. Among the branches of pride are, anger, rage, malice, bitterness and all could operate as a silent killer. Silently, Naaman could have walked away because of his pride and died as a leper. Many are dying in their poor condition spiritually and physically because of their pride.
As God would have it in Naaman’s life, he was persuaded by his servants to go back and act according to the word of the prophet. Naaman responded and went and got cleansed in the Jordan River “And he returned to the man of God, he and all his aides, and came and stood before him; and he said, “Indeed, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel… “(2 Kings 5:15). Do not allow pride to intercept your miracle breakthrough.

Prayer for today: Ask God to deliver you from area of your life that is occupied with pride.