WAY OF GOOD SUCCESS
Philippians 4

The importance of meditating on the word of God in the life of a believer cannot be overemphasized. It can be compared to circulation of blood in the body system. Without constantly and consistently meditating on the word of God, it would be almost impossible for a believer to do according to the word of God which gives all round peace. After the death of Moses, God’s commissioning of Joshua could not be completed without God highlighting to Joshua the importance of meditation. God repeatedly pointed out to Joshua the need to be able to observe His word. God pointed out that meditating is what Joshua needed in order to be able to observe and to do according to His word. Joshua 1:8, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” If the word was not to depart from Joshua’s mouth then it became more of a chewing gum. The word was to become Joshua’s chewing gum morning day and night. Can you imagine chewing the word of God that is like fire and hammer as often as it is required? It is a blessing to be able to observe and to do according to what is written. The ability to be able to observe and do what is written will bring the blessing of prosperity and good success. With the blessings of prosperity and good success comes the peace of God. As a believer, do you wonder what exactly to meditate on in the voluminous Bible? What to meditate on can not be clearly and directly spelt out better like it was in Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” As much as all of these good reports are written throughout the pages of the Bible, good reports are also evident in everyday life that surrounds us. These are all that we need to constantly meditate on because they are what we learn in the word of God. The ability to be able to meditate and observe to do will no doubt bring forth the peace of God just as it is written in Philippians 4:9, “The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.”

Prayer for today: Ask God to cause you to begin to meditate more on His word and on every of His good testimonies.  

STILL AS IT WAS
Jeremiah 1

“Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good…” (Genesis 1:3-4) By the Word, God put creativity into creation. The God of all creation continues to use the same undeniable Word to operate and execute today. The same Word that was in the beginning is the Word today and was testified by John: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” (John 1:1-3) As mighty and powerful as the Word is, it will only work in us when we are able to hear and use it as we are supposed to. Are you hearing the Word of God? If in your hearing, just as you have claimed, you have not been seeing what you heard, it can be concluded that you have not been hearing the Word right or something is wrong somewhere. Job, having heard so many times without seeing, when he finally did see, testified, “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You.” (Job 42:5) The Word of God is power and it is living. You cannot hear Him and doubt Him. The Word of God will always locate you when it is time to find you out. For Jeremiah, when it was the time of his calling, the Word located him. “Then the word of the LORD came to me…” (Jeremiah 1:4) Once he was able to hear God, more of God’s Word began to sound in his direction. Just like Job, Jeremiah also pointed out that his ability to see was rooted in hearing what God had to say. Jeremiah 1:11, “Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘Jeremiah, what do you see?’ And I said, ‘I see a branch of an almond tree.’ What the verse is driving out here is that at a certain point, God spoke to Jeremiah and God later asked him about what he saw in the Word. If Jeremiah had failed to hear, he would not have been able to see where or what the Lord wanted him to see. Evidently, listening is the direction avenue of the grace to hear when He speaks. Jesus testified, “Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word.” (John 8:43) Without the Word, there is no way out for you in this world of wickedness and destruction. Take to the Word: listen, hear and see in the right direction of God. “He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” (Psalm 107:20) The same Word is here for us all today.

Prayer for today: Father, let Your Word of healing and deliverance sound in my direction in Jesus name. 

BE STRONG
2 Timothy 2

God is the Almighty God. He alone is the only One who is capable to do and undo. God alone can and will reverse any situation that is tagged irreversible. When God calls, He never fails to back-up His called one in the assignment of calling regardless of challenges. God alone called Jeremiah for a divine agenda. In God’s calling, He warned Jeremiah. “They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you. For I am with you, says the LORD, to deliver you.” (Jeremiah 1:19) Is it not worth it to wonder why God had to allow Jeremiah to face any challenge while he is attending to God’s assignment? Has he called you and challenges have been rocking you left and right? The great thing is that God is God and He will always have His way. Also, the point here is that God could have called Jeremiah for a challenge or trouble-free assignment, but He chooses not to. God is the same God yesterday, today and forever. Challenges, afflictions and hardship are always birds of the same feather and they flock together in the name of trouble. Challenges, hardship and affliction are often found in association or cannot be separated from the calling of every servant of God. As a matter of fact, the Bible made us to realize in 2 Timothy 2:3-4, “You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 4 No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.” Just like Jeremiah was called, if you are also one who has given your life unto serving God by virtue of His calling, you should consider yourself a soldier of God. All of the above being said, it can be agreed that challenges, hardship or affliction are another identity of a believer who walks in line with God. Psalm 34:19 added more to this fact when it states, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all.” (Psalm 34:19) Evidently, challenges will come for a believer. Hardship might raise its weapon against any army of God and affliction possibly will try to take over in the calling, but the Lord God shall deliver His own in all. This is not to say a believer should go out and begin to look for trouble where there is none. However, it is for you to know and be encouraged that whatever your challenge is today, God who is above all shall deliver you in all. It is not enough to answer to the calling and not finish in the assignment of the calling. Also, it is wisdom to know that answering is not the same as answering and not getting through.

Prayer for today: Ask for God’s enablement to answer fully in the face of ugly challenges in the world of today.

HIS TESTIMONY
1 Kings 18:20-40

Among ways of identifying what it means to fear God is when a man is consumed by the overwhelming awesomeness that is inhabited in the testimony of what God is doing or what He can do. Many places in the Bible recorded fear as the reaction of certain individuals or groups of people to the manifestation of God’s miracles. By this virtue, it is evident that the testimony of God’s work is the fear of God. Here is a testimony of how fear of God was manifested: “A certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. 2 And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. 3 But Peter said, ‘Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself?’”(Acts5:1-3) Ananias had no reason to lie, but he did. Peter’s responded to Ananias’ lie, “While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” (Acts 5:4) Evidently, there was no curse neither was there any physical approach to hurt Ananias, but the Bible records, “Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last. So great fear came upon all those who heard these things. 6 And the young men arose and wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried him.” (Acts 5:5-6) Great fear was the fear that fell on the brethren because it was the fear of God. The same way it happened to Ananias so it happened to his wife Sapphira. God is greatly to be feared. The testimonies of His moves are fearful and He should be fearfully praised. On Mount Carmel, after the failure of the worshipers of Baal to prove that they served a living God, Elijah took his turn to demonstrate that his God is the only living God. Elijah went forward and called on God to show forth and demonstrate His power with fire that consumes. Unlike the Baal god, God in His might responded, “Then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench. 39 Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, ‘The LORD, He is God! The LORD, He is God!’” (1 King 18:38-39) Fear and testimony to the greatness of God was the response of the people. Fear God! Meditate on His testimony because “…The eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His mercy.” (Psalm 33:18)

Prayer for today: Ask for the fear of God to overwhelm you in every area of your life.

FOCUS NOT LONELINESS
1 Kings 19

Could it have been loneliness that caused a man to know what to do and not do it? Peter followed Jesus all through His ministry but gave himself up to a cheap untimely death attempt. In the face of death, Peter was sleeping instead of praying. Thank God for the church’s prayer of deliverance on behalf of Peter. He lost focus and entered into loneliness. The Bible states about him, “And when Peter had come to himself, he said, ‘Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel, and has delivered me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectation of the Jewish people.’” (Acts 12:11) Loneliness will cause man to loose focus and be lead into discouragement that causes man to give up in the face of grave challenges. Elijah, as great as he was used by God, at a certain stage of challenges in his life experienced loneliness. Focusing on what God has done and what He is doing will encourage one in holding onto him as a Deliverer, Preserver, and God who cannot fail. Are you feeling lonely or getting overwhelmed concerning any challenge in your life? As a child of God, you are not alone. Take your stand and regain your focus on Him. He alone is abundantly able to see you through. Elijah called for rain to stop for three and half years and it was so. He called for the rain to come back and it was so. Elijah alone called fire from heaven during a sacrifice on Mount Carmel and he later executed four hundred and fifty-five Baal prophets. All during this period, he repeatedly confessed that he alone was the only prophet of the Lord who was left behind. Despite his great exploit in the name of God, he fled because of Jezebel’s threat to kill him for executing the prophets of Baal. Elijah ran from wilderness to mountain. Twice in the course of his running, he responded to God’s appearance to him, “…I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.” (1 Kings 19:10) Loneliness sounded clearly in Elijah. Loneliness was the evidence of lost focus when a man like Elijah could request from God during his running away from Jezebel, “It is enough! Now, LORD, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!” (1 Kings 19:4) Elijah’s request was to the extreme. Are you walking in that line? It does not mean if you have given your life to Christ or not, but it is certain that the One who created Heaven and heart loves you and all of His creation more than you can imagine. Under heaven, no one is alone except there is a lost of focus from reminding us that God is a good God and He will always show up for our deliverance even at the eleventh hour.

Prayer for today: Ask Him to deliver you from every spirit of loneliness.