Faith Capsule: “when orderliness fails every thing pertaining to life is bound for failure.”

2 Kings 20

Before Hezekiah’s reign in Judah, Ahaz was the king. Ahaz’s time was interrupted with corruptions. Among his worst was, “…in every single city of Judah he made high places to burn incense to other gods, and provoked to anger the LORD God of his fathers.” (2 Chronicles 28:25) When Hezekiah came to power, he did what was right before his God. Hezekiah cleansed the temple and restored service back the way it should be. As a result of his action, it was testified of him, “So the service of the house of the LORD was set in order.” (2 Chronicles 29:35) Orderliness was restored and it gave birth to joy, peace and life in the land. Evidently, when setting things in order or setting one’s life in order, there is life and where there is disorder, life ceases. It does not matter how long you have maintained orderliness, when orderliness fails everything pertaining to life is bound for failure. Hezekiah started his reign great and it was recorded, “…he did what was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father David had done.” (2 Chronicles 29:2) However, in the later part of his reign he fell sick and it was a sickness unto death. It is written, “In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, ‘thus says the LORD: Set your house in order, for you shall die, and not live.’” (2 Kings 20:1) Hezekiah’s house was not in order and as a result an untimely death was ordered for his life. God is a God of order and He expects His children to constantly maintain order in every step of life. Just as His place of worship should be set in order so his worshipers need to approach life in orderliness. Hezekiah turned back to God and humbled himself before God. Hezekiah did not just cry unto God but reminded God of all that he had done (an evidence of repentance before God). God returned to restore him back to life with an addition of fifteen more years. Whatever belongs to you and has now been taken away could be the result of the lack of orderliness. Knowing that God is a God of order, many have nevertheless resolved to take their Christian journey in a disorderly manner by serving God in their own way. Believers are to be led by the Spirit of God; not attempt to try to lead the Spirit of God. The attempt to lead will result into disorder and untimely death will have its way. Trace your step back and return to God like Hezekiah did and it could be that He will have mercy on you.

Prayer for today: O Lord my God, my times are in Your hand: deliver me from disorderliness for Your name sake.

Faith Capsule: “To rise and able to complete is also in the hand of God.”

Psalm 31

When there is understanding about whom you have or what you have, who you have or what you have will work for you. God has given us all that it takes for us to excel, but often times lack of understanding is a lost of knowledge. Isaiah 5:13 is true when it states, “Therefore my people have gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge.” It is knowledge to gain understanding in the Word that there are two different kinds of hands that operate in the life of man: the hand of God and the hand of evil one. Which of the two hands do you strongly desire? The hand of God, of course, should be the one that is strongly desire. However, you cannot desire the hand of God just with your mouth. Also, it is not enough reading and knowing about the hand of God until there is a consistent meditation about what His hand can do. The hand of God delivered the children of Israel from the bondage of over four hundred years and then added favor, “So I will stretch out My hand and strike Egypt with all My wonders which I will do in its midst; and after that he will let you go. And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians…” (Exodus 3:19-21)The hand of God was also in place for Ezra to complete his journey, “On the first day of the first month he began his journey from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, according to the good hand of his God upon him. (Ezra 7:9) The hand of God is a source of encouragement for those who set their mind for His hand to come upon them, “…So I was encouraged, as the hand of the LORD my God was upon me” (Ezra 7:28) It is possible to rise and not able to build. However, to rise and able to complete is also in the hand of God. Nehemiah testified, “And I told them of the hand of my God which had been good upon me, and also of the king’s words that he had spoken to me. So they said, ‘Let us rise up and build.’ Then they set their hands to this good work.” (Nehemiah 2:18). When the hand of God is upon you, there is no deep place you cannot reach, neither is there any height you cannot climb because, “In His hand are the deep places of the earth; the heights of the hills are His also.” (Psalm 95:4) God is a complete God with outstretch hand. The hand of God is not shortened that it cannot save those who believe in Him. 

Prayer for today: Help me Lord; I desire Your hand upon my life in every step that I take.

Faithful Capsule: “Spiritual insensitivity will definitely reduce and not increase a believer.”

Numbers 32

Among the negative effect of spiritual insensitivity is to settle for less where God has made much available. The God who brought the children of Israel out of the bondage of over four hundred years had so much available for them in the Promised Land. The Word of God states, “So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites.” (Exodus 3:8) What could be better than moving from bondage to a land that flows with milk and honey? Among the children of Israel, it was a different case for the children of Gad and the children of Reuben when they decided to settle at the east of Jordan. The Bible recorded that they had a very great multitude of livestock and that prompted a request for a settlement in the region which was a place for livestock. The children of Gad and of Reuben approached Moses to state their desire, “’the country which the LORD defeated before the congregation of Israel, is a land for livestock, and your servants have livestock.’ Therefore they said, ‘If we have found favor in your sight, let this land be given to your servants as a possession. Do not take us over the Jordan.’” (Numbers 32:4-5) It is clear that where there is livestock milk will flow, but not honey. God promised a land of milk and honey, but they resolved themselves to just milk. The land of milk was conveniently enough for them. It is good to be convenient, but when commitment in your convenient is slack you will become insensitive to the move of the Spirit. However, spiritual insensitivity will definitely reduce and not increase a believer. God’s plan and promise was to take them to a land that flows with milk and honey, but getting to the land that flows with only milk got them out of God’s plan. Moses questioned their decision, “Now why will you discourage the heart of the children of Israel from going over into the land which the LORD has given them? (Numbers 32:7) Are you operating in the mind of the children of Gad and Reuben in any way in your journey to the Promised Land? Do not allow convenience to cloud your commitment. In your journey be sensitive to what the Spirit of God has said and the One who is speaking. God has a better plan than you can see. Convenient is good, but do not slack in your commitment.

Prayer for today: Ask God to restore unto you whatever you have lost to spiritual insensitivity. 

Faith Capsule: God is faithful to deliver what He promised if you will zealously desire His promise.

Psalm 34

Nothing can be better than having the fear of God reign in our life. When the fear of God takes its rightful place, walking fully in the righteousness of God will make us to live heaven on earth. The Psalmist pointed out, “The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them.” (Psalm 34:7) This statement came from King David who had been there and been through. In this world of wickedness, what could be better than having the untouchable force surrounding us every second of our life? He did not stop at the first statement but went further and made another statement, “Oh, fear the LORD, you His saints! there is no want to those who fear Him.” (Psalm 34:9) David was talking from real life experience not from what he had not tasted. Indeed God is good and true to His Word. Do you have the kind of fear that it takes for man to be living heaven on earth? There is no one who is born with having the fear of God. Having the fear of God comes when there is hearing and learning to fear Him. It is written, ““Gather the people together, men and women and little ones, and the stranger who is within your gates, that they may hear and that they may learn to fear the LORD your God and carefully observe all the words of this law, and that their children, who have not known it, may hear and learn to fear the LORD your God as long as you live in the land which you cross the Jordan to possess.” (Deuteronomy 31:12-13) Living to fear God is not limited to a certain group but to all people. Also, it is not limited to a certain time in the history of creation. As an acclaimed believer in the Word of God, do you have to constantly introduce yourself as one who fears God or does your approach to life always introduce you as one who fears God? Honestly, the fear of God cannot be hidden and it should be written all over us in our approach to life. Do you desire the fear of God to take over your life? This is what it takes: give yourself to studying and gaining more understanding of the Lord God from the words of His mouth. Determination to know His fear is good but it is not enough. Desire to fear God and He will deposit His fear in you. He promised in Jeremiah 32:40, “…I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me.” He is faithful to deliver what He promised if you will zealously desire it. God is good.

Prayer for today: O Lord I ask for Your fear to reign and rule my life in Jesus name.

Faith Capsule:Praying without watching is not enough; watching without praying will not prevail.

Nehemiah 4

At the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus responded to His disciples that could not stay up in praying and watching, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41) In this world of wickedness, it will take watching and praying to overcome. Praying without watching is not enough and watching without praying will not prevail. Temptation is everywhere and ready to kill, steal and destroy. Thank God that the One that came to give life abundantly has come and He gave us His Word to overcome temptation. The Word to overcome temptation for anyone who cares to assimilate it is: “WATCH and PRAY” If there was any other Word against temptation; Jesus would have given it to us. When temptation comes, it is meant to discourage, disrupt, confuse and take the place to terminate its victim. Through the pages of Bible that is written for our learning, there are situations where watching and praying has denied temptation from discouraging children of God and they could not be destroyed. Nehemiah had the hand of God to go and rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. Despite God being in the move to rebuild through Nehemiah, agents of the evil one, Sanballat, Tobiah and others, took a stand against the attempt to rebuild. Just as the work of rebuilding was to be rounded up, the agents of the evil one re-intensified their effort to terminate the project. They came up with different conspiracies to create confusion. Notwithstanding, Nehemiah responded when he claimed, “Nevertheless we made our prayer to our God, and because of them we set a watch against them day and night.”(Nehemiah 4:9) Evidently, Nehemiah’s approach was in line with the Word that calls to “WATCH and PRAY”. How did they watch and pray? Prayer is always non-stop and a continuous process. Watching demands carefully applied actions which were clear in Nehemiah’s move. Nehemiah positioned men at strategic places, he set people up in order, he looked into what called for attention by discouraging every reason to be afraid, he remembered the great works of God and he put the trumpet in place (a resounding weapon that calls for back up). (Nehemiah 4: 13-18) Are you one who prays constantly without watching? With your prayer life, begin to watch as you maintain right positioning before God and set your house in order. Be constantly encouraged in His word to deny fear. Always remember the Lord by considering the work of His hand. Above speak out (blow your trumpet) where you need to and do not compromise. With Nehemiah’s style of watching applied to your prayer life, you are set for victory just like Nehemiah was.

Prayer for today: O Lord my God I ask for Your deliverance from the evil one that I may not be a reproach of the foolish one.