FAITH CAPSULE: Take to the Word of God and He will take you forward, not backward.

Genesis 19:17-26, Jeremiah 7:21-28
 
Which way are you going in the world that is clouded with wickedness; life terminating challenges and untimely death? Are you obeying God’s command as often as it should be? The word of God is His command and His command is His word.
Obeying God’s command is the only way to go forward; disobeying His command is the way backward. Which way are you going? It is written, “But this is what I commanded them, saying, Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you that it may be well with you.” (Jeremiah 7:23) His way is His commandment; His commandment is His way. Are you one that is full of lying, deception and manipulation? Have you found out lately that your journey is going the backward way instead of the forward way? It is time to have a change of way and have a turn around. God is not an incomplete God; neither is He an inconsistent God. Your turn around will allow God to start good for you. When God starts a good thing for you, getting to expected end is certain. Philippians 1:6, “Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
It is worthy for one to always take a moment and search where one is going wrong or where one have entered in to a backward way. Among the reasons that leads man in to backward way is stated in Jeremiah 7:24, “Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but followed the counsels and the dictates of their evil hearts, and went backward and not forward.” Does the verse sound familiar to your situation? Have you searched and found out that you have given in to the dictates of your heart? It is left for you to seek answers and correction in the pages of the word of God. There is clarity in the fact that backward going is the way of death; forward going is the way of life. Lot’s wife took to her own backward way when she looked back against the word of God which commanded her not to look back. It is written, “…escape for your life! Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be destroyed.” (Genesis 19:17) In this world of sin, the only way to escape sudden and untimely death is the way of obeying the word as commanded by God. Take to the Word of God and He will take you forward, not backward.

Prayer for today: Ask God to open your ears and heart of receiving and obeying His word.

FAITH CAPSULE: Moses pleaded with God, but his plea was not accepted.

Numbers 20:1-13, Deuteronomy 3: 23-29
 
Living life is a journey and it has beginning and end. Journey that starts and ends with full obedience to the word of God leads to living a fulfilled life that glorifies the name of God. The journey of life does not run straight. It has ups and downs; hills and valleys. There are always twists and turns before getting to one’s expected end. Moses was a giant in the hand of God though his journey went through ups and downs. He led the children of Israel through forty years of wandering in the wilderness before coming to the Promised Land. Moses failed from stepping on the Promised Land; he could not lead them through the crossing over, because he did not follow through with God’s command. Just as Moses could not cross over while the younger Israelites crossed over, so it is possible for one that pastor a congregation to miss heaven while the congregation makes heaven. Careful obedience to God’s word is not limited to the congregation but also to His ministers.
God asked him to speak to the rock, but he struck the rock twice with his rod. Numbers 20:12, “Then the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, ‘Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.’” When a simple obedience to the word of God is violated, one would simply end up with consequence that is not simple to deal with. There is no simple disobedience to the word of His command. Because of the lack of faith of the children of Israel, Moses was not allowed to get to the end of the journey that he so strongly desired. Are you about to cross over in your journey? Pay attention to details which He has commanded you.
Moses pleaded with God, but his plea was not accepted, Deuteronomy 3:25, “I pray, let me cross over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, those pleasant mountains, and Lebanon.” Before you get to the point where no pleading or prayer will be accepted, ask God to remove any force or agent that will deny you from getting to the good land. It was because of the faithless Israelites that Moses was denied. Moses stated God’s response to his prayer, “But the Lord was angry with me on your account, and would not listen to me. So the LORD said to me: Enough of that! Speak no more to Me on this matter.” (Deuteronomy 3:26) Your situation might not be because of anyone else’s account, but because of your own actions and the manner in which you are living your life.   
 
Prayer for today: Ask God to remove any obstacle that would prohibit you from crossing over to your Promised Land.

FAITH CAPSULE:Every act that is contrary to the way of God is a wicked way.

Luke 22:1-6, 47-53
 
The word of God admonished us in Proverbs 4:23 “keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” Judas Iscariot failed to keep his heart. When you fail to keep your heart with all diligence through Christ Jesus, Satan will enter just as it entered into Judas’ heart. Luke. 22:3 “Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the twelve. So he went his way and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him to them.” After it entered into Judas’ heart, Judas went his way. He left the sure and the true way. He took to a way that appeared right to him and not right to God. It was the way of his death.
Satan will not announce himself before he enters into any man’s heart. You have to renounce him from entering by keeping your heart diligent.
It is written, “Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the LORD; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart.”(Jeremiah 24:7) Do you desire a heart for God? When we devote to having our desire, God will deposit into us our desire. 
Ask God today, to give you a heart that is not accessible by Satan; a heart to know Him and not be a wicked vessel. After Satan entered into Judas, Judas took to a convenient way. The word states, “Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Him to them. And when they heard it, they were glad, and promised to give him money. So he sought how he might conveniently betray Him.” (Mark 14:10-11)
Serving God is a commitment when one’s desire for serving with convenience overrides the commitment to serve, Satan will serve one with a convenient way of selling Jesus. When you sell Him you have betrayed Him. Judas sold Jesus and bagged Jesus up with a kiss. Many are still selling Him today. Are you one that is selling Him by the words of your mouth (telling lies)?
As smooth as telling lies could be; as easy as it can be delivered to achieve one’s own purpose, it is a smooth step into wicked ways. Every act that is contrary to the way of God is a wicked way.
Proverbs 15:29 disclosed what is up with the wicked stating, “The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.”  God is still in the business of answering prayer.
 
Prayer for today:Pray the prayer of the righteous as recorded in Psalm 139:23, “Search me O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

FAITH CAPSULE: The way of death is wicked and the way of the wicked is death.

Jeremiah 12
 
Listening to the word of God is the key to obeying the word of God. However, not listening to the word of God is a choice; not a curse. It is the choice of not listening that brings one under a curse. Whenever a dog chooses its way by not listening to the owner, that dog will be lost and death is the dead end of lost. Just as it is for a dog to get lost for not listening to his owner, so it is for a man that fails not to listen to his creator. A failure not to listen is making a choice to get out of the way. Jesus said in John14:6, I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through Me.
As an acclaimed believer, have you ever considered the way you are going?
Are you looking into your material wealth as a determinant of your way? Let not your material prosperity deceive you because material prosperity alone is not the measure of God’s blessing. Also, the position of power you are now is not the measure of God’s blessing.
It is worthy to take time out and sincerely identify the way you have chosen. Is it the way of the wicked or the way of death?
The way of death is wicked and the way of the wicked is death. Among what it means to walk in the way of the wicked is identifiable in Jeremiah’s conversation with God. In Jeremiah 12:1, Jeremiah stated before God “Righteous are You, O Lord, when I plead with You;yet let me talk with You about Your judgments.Why does the way of the wicked prosper?Why are those happy who deal so treacherously?You have planted them, yes, they have taken root;they grow, yes, they bear fruit.You are near in their mouthbut far from their mind.” Are you one that speaks the word fluently out of the mouth but not operate the word in the heart? Anyone that has the word in the mouth but not in the heart fits into the description of Jeremiah’s way of identifying the wicked.
The word of God commands us not to lie but in the corner of your mouth a highway for telling lies runs through your mind. When you promise what you cannot deliver, you have lied. Half lies are the same as whole lies. Deception is a lie. Giving a promise that cannot be delivered is a deception, it is telling lies and it fits into Jeremiah’s description of the wicked. An acclaimed believer that makes telling lies his/her comfort zone is threading the avenue of death. The Lord is coming back for a church without spot or wrinkle.

Prayer for today:Ask that your days and your ways be concentrated unto God.

FAITH CAPSULE: Signs followed those that followed Him in His command because He was accompanying them.

Mark 16
 
To follow the Lord in the order of His calling is to flow in His power. It is demonstrated in the Bible that every time there is a response to His calling, signs and wonders were evident. It is written in the book of Mark16: 15, “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.’” This is exactly why He called us to follow Him. It is demonstrated later in the same chapter of Mark that what He had called His disciples to go for brought forth undeniable results. Mark 16:20, “And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs Amen.”  Signs followed those that followed Him in His command because He was accompanying them. He never fails accompanying those that follow through in His order. Do you wonder what the signs are? The signs are mentioned in Mark 16:17-18, “And these signs will follow those who believe: In my name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” The signs will not follow religious people but those that follow Him by going out of their comfort zone into the commitment route. Following His order demands commitment. The word of God is not for decoration but for declaration and it demands activation before manifestation could be in place.   
Matthew and Luke also confirmed that His calling to go out and preach the gospel is also backed with deliverance and healing signs. Signs are what unbelievers need to see more that is, signs that are undeniable, undisputable, and signs that are glaring and provocative. These signs will not be available where following Him has been folded up. These signs will not have its way in the confinement of buildings where fresh fish is constantly missing, where fish is being transferred from one assembly to another assembly. Without any doubt, when the signs become constantly glaring, undeniable and explosive, the world will begin to know that He meant what He said and He will do what He says He will do. What are you waiting for? What is holding you down from going out and follow Him?
 
Prayer for today:Ask God for His spirit to move you because no might, power, or determination will be enough to move you. Avoid stepping out of His order. Follow Him and you will flow in His power and signs.