FAITH CAPSULE: If you will take to the Word of God and allow faith to rise in you, fear will sink.

Hebrews 11

When God says fear not, He meant for us not to entertain fear, but to rather exercise faith. What is it that you are fearful of? At the sense of any danger, the children of Israel in their wilderness journey without hesitation always resolved to complaints and negative confessions. In the face of any challenge, we can stand if we will always remember that God does not lie. It is written in Isaiah 55:11, “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”Evidently, every Word of God is true to perform that which it was sent to do. To every wise one, it is worth it to take the Word and hold on to it in faith. Holding on to the Word in faith is working the Word to make the Word work for us. Faith is to know that God is near to us more than we can imagine. The Psalmist stated in Psalm 75:1, “…Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near.”Interestingly, we are surrounded by all kinds of wondrous works of God yet holding to His promises can be challenging when it should not be so. The Word of God created the wondrous works of God. By this understanding, it is clear that when we have the word of creation then the Creator is near to us. Why not take the Word into your life and operate in faith? Faith demands that you wait and know that God will not forget you neither shall He fail to back you up when you wait in faith. Isaiah 64:4 testifies, “For since the beginning of the world Men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, nor has the eye seen any God besides You, Who acts for the one who waits for Him.” A powerful testimony is a provoking testimony for whoever allows God testimonies to have a place inside of their life. In Heaven and on earth, there is none who acts for the ones that wait for God but God. What is clouding your life and causing your inability to wait in faith? God is real and He is willing to act on behalf of the ones who wait for Him. Faith is all that pleases Him. Hebrews 11:6, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him…” If you will take to the Word of God and allow faith to rise in you, fear will sink. Proverbs 29:25,”The fear of a man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD shall be safe.”

Prayer for today: Ask that the faith which delivers good testimony become your portion.

FAITH CAPSULE: The mind of Christ Jesus is none other than love.
 
Philippians 2

It is written, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 2:5) What kind of mind was in Jesus Christ? The mind of Christ Jesus is none other than love. He came in love, with love and to love. He is the love of God for us. The Bible states, “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.” (John 3:16)Love cannot be determined by only what you give because man can give without love, but no one can love without giving. Jesus’ love is the love that comes to give. Jesus’ love is unconditional love, the indication of love that is genuine. The mind of Christ is love and when love becomes our inside, we are set for great exploits. With Jesus, God’s presence was always there just as He testifies, “And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone…” (John 8:29) Just like Jesus’ mind, when loving all men becomes our mind, God’s presence will not depart from us in every area of life. The kind of love that operates as the mind of Christ Jesus is that of 1 Corinthians 13:4-8: “Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.” The love of Jesus is not the kind that you operate today and not tomorrow. His love is with compassion and it is always constant and consistent. In the mind of Jesus, there is no burden, no yoke and that is why He encouraged in Matthew 11:28-29, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” A loving heart will not experience yoke or burden. To love cannot be separated from being humble. The evidence of lack of humility in the life of a man is a demonstration of lack of love. It is clearly stated in Philippians 2:8, “And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.” It took a genuine unconditional love; a love that does not complain to lay down His life. Without humility love cannot become of any mind.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace to have the mind of Christ Jesus.

FAITH CAPSULE: A manifestation of divine care is all that it takes to navigate the journey of life successfully.

Esther 2

In the story of Esther, we see the providence of God at work. Esther found favor with everyone she encountered. The Bible recorded that Hadassah, that is Esther, had no father and was brought up by Mordecai who had been carried away from Jerusalem. It is written, “Mordecai had brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle’s daughter, for she had neither father nor mother. The young woman was lovely and beautiful. When her father and mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter.” (Esther 2:7) Esther, despite the fact that her biological father and mother were not there, believed that the providence of God could not be denied to work for her. God is a creative God whose understanding is unsearchable. It is only God that is powerful enough to change the story of a prisoner to a prime minister. He alone changed the story of gate-man to a great man. The greatness and magnitude of His operation is unsearchable. There is no situation that is enough to reduce the hand of God from taking one to where He destined for one to be. Mordecai was destined to rise but rising was not written anywhere on him because he was a gate-man. It was at the gate, where there was no sign or evidence of rising up, that he disrupted a plot against King Ahasuerus. By virtue of Mordecai’s disruption of the plot against the king, he had his name written in the chronicles of the king. Mordecai eventually became the second in command to King Ahasuerus.
Queen Vashti’s disobedience to King Ahasuerus called for a search for a new queen. After the dethronement of Queen Vashti, door was made opened for Esther to be enthroned. It was recorded about Esther, “…And Esther obtained favor in the sight of all who saw her. So Esther was taken to King Ahasuerus, into his royal palace, in the tenth month, which is the month of Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign. The king loved Esther more than all the other women, and she obtained grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins; so he set the royal crown upon her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.”(Esther 2:15-17) The point here is if God did not reduce one; one should never reduce self regardless of situation or position one is occupying. Mordecai and Esther had no god-father, but they had the providence of Father God at work as they found favor. Look up to the Father God and He will make a way at the least expected ground.

Prayer for today: Ask for the providence of God to go to work on your behalf in every area of life.

FAITH CAPSULE: Love as commanded by the word of God and fulfill God’s command.

1 Corinthians 13

Paul the apostle stated the importance of love, 1 Corinthians 13:1-3, “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.” It is clear in Paul’s word that though a believer can demonstrate the gifts of God such: as speaking in tongues, prophesying, reaching out to the needy and making oneself available when or where there is need, without love, all is empty and it carries no weight. Love as commanded by the word of God and fulfill God’s command.
Jesus meant what He was saying when He stated in Matthew 7:22-23, “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’” Have you been demonstrating any of the gifts in the name of Jesus while you entertain hate, bitterness, and any other opposite of what it means to love? Man can be deceived, one can possibly lie o pastor, brethren can be manipulated, but God sees the heart of all. The apostle Paul went further to describe what love is about, 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, “Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” If every believer will consider the description of what love is about just as stated by the apostle Paul, there will be a need for grace and not a determination to love because determination will fail. To love in truth and in deed seems impossible but God will not require of us what is not possible. Love and be saved, “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”(Galatians 5:14) Above all, every believer needs to examine and search themselves if they truly love instead of lying, deception and manipulation.

Prayer for today: Ask for the grace to love the way the word of God requires and not in your own way of loving.

FAITH CAPSULE: Allow faith to rise so that fear will sink and doubt will have no place.  

Matthew 11:1-15

What is it that is causing you to have doubt instead of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ? With doubt fear will eventually come to place. Where there is fear or when fear is rising, faith will sink. The Bible identifies the source of faith stating, “…faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17) Engage hearing and hearing by the word of God, allow faith to rise so that fear will sink and doubt will have no place in you. Deny your present situation or your location from operating as an agent that causes you to doubt.
John the Baptist doubted Jesus. It is written, “And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said to Him, “Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?” (Matthew 11:2-3) Is there any representative of prison in your life that is causing doubt of what Jesus can do? John the Baptist, while spending time in prison doubted Jesus. It was John that baptized Jesus. It is written, “Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him” (Matthew 3:13) John the Baptist bears witness of Jesus, “…Behold The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.”’ (John 1:29-30) John also exalted Jesus when he stated that, “He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all.” (John 3:31) Despite all that John the Baptist knew about Jesus, when he was in the prison of his life, he doubted Jesus. John wanted to know what he already knew. Remember you have heard it all and you have seen it all; if you will hold on to all that you have known you will depart from doubt and not dwell in it. Jesus’ response to John’s doubt is the same response that is speaking to you, “…Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.” (Mathew 11:4-6) Where there is doubt faith has a tendency not to stand. Hebrew 11:6, “…But without faith it is impossible to please Him…” Take your stand and declare to your situation that Jesus is Lord and there is nothing He cannot do.

Prayer for today: Ask the Lord God to deliver you from every spirit of doubt