FAITH CAPSULE: Seek God to obtain favor.

Esther 3, 4, 5,

Favor is what we can seek God to obtain in the face of confronting challenge. It is written in Proverb 8:35, “For whoever finds me finds life, and obtains favor from the LORD.” Esther sought God through fasting and praying and obtains God’s favor that gave life to the children of Israel. Haman was a high-ranking officer during the reign of king Ahasuerus. He devised a plot to terminate the children of Israel because their laws are different from the laws of the Land, and they would not keep the laws of the land. For the children of Israel to escape the evil devises of Haman against them, there would have to be someone to take a particular stand on a particular ground for their deliverance to be able to stand. The particular ground was the inner court. This is how the Bible described the inner court, “All the king’s servants and the people of the King’s provinces know that any man or woman who goes into the inner court to the king, who has not been called, he has but one law: put all to death, except the one to whom the king holds out the golden scepter, that he may live…” Yet I myself have not been called to go in to the king these thirty days.” (Esther 4:11) The description about going into the inner court was Esther’s message to Mordecai. Also, it was the reason for her not being able to go and take a stand on a ground that was in place for their deliverance. Mordecai put pressure on Esther, and Esther responded by asking for days of fasting that would enable her to go and take a stand of deliverance for the children of Israel. Esther went and took a stand when she was not supposed to. “So it was, when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court that she found favor in his sight, and the king held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther went near and touched the top of the scepter.” (Esther 5:2) It was favor that granted Esther the privilege to take a stand of deliverance on behalf of the children of Israel. When David began to get closer to his ground of break through, his ground of divine schedule king Saul needed someone that could play an instrument for his mental illness. David was the qualified one, “Then Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Please let David stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight.””(1 Samuel 16:22) It is all about favor. Esther found favor, David found favor and they both took a stand of breakthrough.

Prayer for today: Ask God today for the kind of favor that takes man to his ground of breakthrough.

FAITH CAPSULE: The word of God is not for emotional entrainment.

Proverb 4

The word of God is the command of God. Looking into the word of God will cause one to constantly attend to the word of God. Looking into the command of God will keep one from being ashamed. (Psalm 119:6) It is impossible to look into the word of God and not see direction that leads away from the way of shame. The Psalmist states, “with my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” (Psalm 119:10-11) The word of God needs three crucial parts of the body to work with in order for it to be able to direct every man from the pit of darkness, destruction and the pit of eternal damnation. When the word of direction, healing and victory comes through the ear, it must be well received enough before the eyes can be begin to see what is not there as being there. It is the heart that will transport that word and settle it for mediation or settle it with the purpose of remembering the words received. The book of Proverbs put it better when it says, “My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings, do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart; For they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh.” (Proverbs 4:20-22) Are you giving your attention to the word of God? Are you inclining your ears, eyes and heart? God can do all things in the world of today just like He did at the time of creation. All that was created was by the word of God. God, in His doing all things, there is only one thing that He cannot do and that is, “God cannot fail.” God has not and will never fail. Are you allowing the word to enter, rather than for emotional entertainment? The word of God is not for emotional entrainment, it is to gain entrance and give the light required for the termination of darkness. Psalm 119:130, “The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.” The simple will be simple enough to hear the word of God and do all that the word calls for. However, the ones that are not simple will miss all that the word is communicating. Do you wonder who the simple are? Proverbs 14:15, “The simple believes every word…” When you believe the words of God it will enter and give light and understanding. What are you giving attention to? With light no darkness will fall you. The favor of God is what you gain when understanding is in place. (Proverbs 13:15)

Prayer for today:Ask for the grace of attending to the word of God with intention and with a purposeful heart.

FAITH CAPSULE: Be encouraged that God does have His own plan of taking you through.

Genesis 41:1-24

It does not matter how you get into the dungeon or how long you have been in the dungeon. However, it matters that if you will look up to Him today, He will look down to bring you out of the dungeon quickly. It is written, “Look up to Me and be saved, all you ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.” (Isaiah 45:22) The word of God cannot fail. Joseph was obediently attending to his father errand when he entered into a journey that led him all the way into a dungeon. Joseph was sent by his father Jacob from the Valley of Hebron to Shechem to look for the well being of his brothers. At Joseph’s arrival to where the brothers have been, his brothers sent him into the pit and later picked him up for sale to a company of Ishmaelite because of envy. While serving in his master’s house, the wife laid a false charge of sexual harassment on him and he ended in the prison. Joseph did not bargain for the entire unfavorable situation that came his way while going obeying his father. While in prison, he interpreted favorable and unfavorable dreams for two Chiefs (Butler and Baker) that were confined by Pharaoh. The dream’s interpretation came out to be true. The chief forgot Joseph despite’s Joseph’s plead to the chief to remember him. After two years that he has been forgotten by chief, God make a way for him to be remembered when Pharaoh had a dream that needed to be interpreted. Be encouraged that God does have His own plan of taking you through. Know that such is life and it is full of ups and downs but God that is up will lift you up at His divine timing. When it was time for Joseph to come out, there was no sign or any indication that he was to be released and nothing could stop the move of God to release him from the dungeon. Pharaoh’s dream demanded for an interpretation and none other than Joseph that could interpret the dream. As a result, the Chief Butler remembered Joseph. Chief Butler mentioned about Joseph to Pharaoh, “Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph and they brought him quickly out of the dungeon; and he shaved, changed in his clothing, and came to Pharaoh.” (Genesis 41:14) Besides the fact that his release came quickly, his garment was also changed and he was shaved. Can you imagine Joseph coming out of the dungeon quickly and neat (changed and shaved)? Imagine your coming out of dungeon and it shall come to be.

Prayer for today: In Jesus name, you will come out quickly and all that has become a stain on you will be cleansed and forever you will no longer go back into any self or man’s created dungeon.

FAITH CAPSULE:God’s calling and backing in your life will not excuse you from grave challenges but it will rescue you from every force of hindrances.

Jeremiah 38

When God place His call on anyone no one replaces the one He calls. When God called Jeremiah, He backed him up with His promise and He equipped Him with power of His hand. Jeremiah 1:8-10, “Do not be afraid of their faces, for I am with you to deliver you,” says the LORD. Then the LORD put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me: “Behold, I have put my words in your mouth. See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant.” (Jeremiah 1:8-10) God’s calling and backing in your life will not excuse you from grave challenges but it will rescue you from every force of hindrances. Despite the promise and backing of God, Jeremiah was imprisoned in the basement cistern of Malchiah King Zedekiah for delivering true message. The cistern had no water only mire. The only way out of the cistern was by means of rope. It is a place where Jeremiah could die a slow and quiet death. Ebed-Melech an Ethiopian was one of the eunuchs in King Zedekiah’s house. He heard about Jeremiah in the dungeon and went and spoke to the king, “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon, and he is likely to die from hunger in the place where he is…” (Jeremiah 38:9) Do not allow challenges that you are facing today cause you a doubt in your calling by the Lord. The account of Jeremiah is enough to encourage you. Jeremiah was a prophet called by God and was imprisoned in a cistern; he was in a position that could have taken away his life, a position of no way out before Ebed-Melech an agent of salvation for Jeremiah through God showed up. Today, someone will hear about your own situation and that one will move on your behalf to find a way out for your salvation. The King responded to Ebed-Melech’s request and commanded Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian, saying, “Take from here thirty men with you, and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon before he dies.” (Jeremiah38: 10)

Prayer for today: The one that God will send in your direction for your salvation will receive the commanding power to lift you above and beyond every representative of a dungeon in your life. As you come out of your dungeon, Kings and honorable men and women in place of power will ask for your help in solving problems. As you come out, you will not go down into any representative of dungeon all the days of your life again in the name of Jesus.

FAITH CAPSULE: When you begin to see or hear negative in news or threat that you receive it will end up causing you to neglect faith for fear.

1 Kings 18, 19:1-3

Faith is seeing or hearing possibility when news that comes our way is impossible. Prophet Elisha prayed for a Shunammite woman to have a child and she did. The child grew, fell sick and died. Having dead, the woman returned to look for Elisha. It is written, “…When Elisha saw her afar off, he sent to his servant Gehazi, “Please run now to meet her, and say to her, ‘is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with the child? And she answered, “It is well.”” (2 Kings 4:26) The woman saw and knew that her son was dead, yet she saw wellness. When Elijah caused rain to cease in the land through his prayer he became a fugitive. He was sought for everywhere in the land but could not be located. At his showing, he called for a “power parade” between his God and the prophets of Baal. It was a demonstration of power on Mount Carmel. Elijah wanted to humiliate Baal worshipers, their prophets and the Baal god. He wanted the children of Israel to answer if the Lord is God. The Baal prophets failed and could not live up to the task of demonstrating the fact that their god was a living God. The name of the Lord was exalted and lifted high among the people because the God of Elijah, answered by fire. At this juncture, Elijah requested that the Baal prophets be rounded up, seized and executed. Elijah was operating without fear. At the time when Jezebel heard all that Elijah had done, “Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.”(1 Kings 19:2) Jezebel the wicked wife of King Ahab threatened Elijah. Elijah did not just receive the message but he saw it as real because the Bible declared that, “And when he saw that, he rose and ran for his life, and went to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there.”” (1 Kings 19:3)  Despite all that God did through Elijah, he could not wait to hear from God before running. Elijah saw the threat in the message that came from Jezebel. How are you receiving news or threat that comes your way? When you begin to see or hear negative in news or threat that you receive it will end up causing you to neglect faith for fear. Fear does not have respect of whom to approach or not to approach. How do you respond when fear comes?

Prayer for today: Ask for God’s deliverance from spirit that causes you to fear in the place of faith.