Your Refreshing Daily Devotional

Both the core and other disciples of Jesus exercised various negative traits ranging from pride to division to unbelief. The Master did His utmost to smoothen their rough edges before He went to the Cross. Some of those problems still persisted till after resurrection. A good example was the two men that Jesus accused of slowness of heart. On their way to Emmaus, they were discussing the trending news of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. They believed God, but their minds could not handle the resurrection. Regrettably, we still have such a problem today. Failure to comprehend what God is saying or doing is a proof of constricted minds.

Failure to comprehend what God is saying or doing is a proof of constricted minds…Seeing is the beginning of possession! What we see is what we eventually possess…In order to see clearly into God’s plan and purposes, we must constantly battle to pull down Satan’s strongholds in the mind.

The mind is crucially important in our overall walk with God. Long after the spirit had been regenerated, the mind has to undergo continuous renewal. It is through the process of renewal that the mind is enlarged and able to see broadly into God’s scheme. Seeing is the beginning of possession! What we see is what we eventually possess. However, we are not referring to perception through the physical eyes; it is with the eyes of the mind. The devil knows this much; that is why he battles the mind regularly. He erects stronghold of blindness in the minds of people to prevent them from seeing the glorious light streaming from God. In order to see clearly into God’s plan and purposes, we must constantly battle to pull down Satan’s strongholds in the mind.

You will not have to study far in the Psalms before you learn of David’s affection for God. In Psalm 5:2, he declares that God would hear his voice in the morning. In Psalm 55:17, he declares, “Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, And He shall hear my voice.” Then in Psalm 122:1, he reveals his excitement hearing it was time to go to the house of God. This same affection was what inspired him to contemplate building a temple for God. Although he did not secure leave of God to build the temple, he made elaborate financial and material preparations for it. Apart from what he gave of his personal treasures, he mobilized the leaders and indeed all Israel to give as well. In today’s estimate, it is believed that the temple of Solomon could be worth anything from $270 to $300 million!

Love cannot be hidden. If we love God, it will show in our language…those who profess love for God must be ready to part with their resources towards the work of God…we cannot love by words of mouth alone; we have to pledge our finances as well.

Love cannot be hidden. If we love God, it will show in our language. Loving God will show in the zeal we exercise towards His name. Of course, those who profess love for God must be ready to part with their resources towards the work of God. This is one reason why God will put resources in the hands of people. He taught Israel how to get wealth before they left Egypt. It then came a time to build the tabernacle in the wilderness, and that was possible by those who gave out of what they had been given by God. Moving the work of God forward in our days will require huge resources. Therefore, we cannot love by words of mouth alone; we have to pledge our finances as well.

A woman recalled her experience with the husband. While at work, her husband got across to her on phone to help him understand how something works. After all the explanations, the man could still not grasp it. Thinking that the conversation was over and the husband already hung up on the other end, she remarked, “this man is good for nothing”. Unfortunately, her husband hadn’t dropped the phone and heard his wife’s comment. When she realised that, she was in a fix, wondering how she would face him at the end of work. The woman’s careless remarks would fit perfectly into what our lead scriptures say. Some speeches are like the piercings of a sword!

Some speeches are like the piercings of a sword! People often underestimate the power of words…Whenever we speak, we are either appropriating death and life to ourselves or projecting them to others.

People often underestimate the power of words. In my growing up days, our elders often compared words to raw eggs. Just as you cannot gather yoke back into the shell once spilled, that is how it is difficult to recall words once spoken. The Bible says that the power of death and life lies in the tongue. Whenever we speak, we are either appropriating death and life to ourselves or projecting them to others. The world around us is hurting already too badly. It will be uncharitable to add to the burdens people experience through unguarded words and deeds. In James’ word, we are a spring; and we cannot afford to produce both sweet and bitter water at the same time. Consciously, we should consecrate our tongue to God that it might be a source of healing whenever we speak.

After the death of Sarah, Abraham approached his hosts to buy a parcel of land to serve as a burial site. On a couple of occasions, he stressed his desire to “bury my dead out of my sight”. Though Abraham referred to “my dead” in a literal sense, his words carry meanings beyond the literal interpretation. He underlined a powerful principle that makes progress possible in life – the need to let go whatever is no longer working. In a literal sense, burial takes place to bring about a closure. Where a young life is involved, burial marks the beginning of the healing process. Finally, it clears the ground to be about other pursuits in life.

…not all dead things are worthy of resurrection. There are experiences that must be buried out of sight. Same thing with relationships…Rather than getting stuck with the past, leverage the promise of God to do a new thing in your life.

In a metaphorical sense, there is need to bury what is dead out of sight. I have known people who cling to relationships that have long died, hoping for some miracle of resurrection. As hard as this may sound, not all dead things are worthy of resurrection. There are experiences that must be buried out of sight. Same thing with relationships. There are dead businesses that must be buried out of sight. If we don’t bury certain things out of sight, the ghosts of the past will not only haunt us, they can also halt us from making progress. In Isaiah 43:19, God made a promise: “Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (NKJV). Rather than getting stuck with the past, leverage the promise of God to do a new thing in your life.

Apostle Peter addressed his second epistle to those who have obtained precious faith like theirs. “Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:” II Peter 1:1 NKJV. In effect, he meant that he had no special advantage over any other person professing faith in Jesus. It is important to note that it was that precious faith we find at the root of his exploits ranging from healing the lame man to raising the dead. If we have what Peter had, why does it seem that we are powerless and helpless? Why doesn’t the name produce as effectively as it once did? A principal reason is that many people routinely take the name of the Lord in vain.

Two things can be seen here as taking the name of the Lord in vain; that is, lying and stealing…Lie misleads; it corrupts the judgment of the victim…Withholding what is due to people and to God is also stealing! …It’s time to clean up so as to recover our heritage in the name of Jesus.

Two things can be seen here as taking the name of the Lord in vain; that is, lying and stealing. These issues are viewed seriously by God. Whenever someone lies, he is indirectly controlling his victim; and God does not want anyone to have a controlling spirit. Lie misleads; it corrupts the judgment of the victim. We will all readily condemn armed robbers. However, it is not only when people rob at gun point that they violate God’s word. Withholding what is due to people and to God is also stealing! The problem today is that so much lying and stealing are going on in the Church. And as if that is not enough, people don’t count them as gross sins. It’s time to clean up so as to recover our heritage in the name of Jesus.

The history of the world has been largely that of conflict punctuated occasionally by relative calm. Our text says that the work of righteousness will be peace. It goes without saying that the perpetual conflicts and full blown war that the world has known is a pointer to the absence of righteousness. Melchizedek is known to be a type of Christ. Hebrews 7:2 describes him first as the king of righteousness and then the King of peace. Peace cannot take place in the absence of righteousness. In eschatological terms, the 1,000 years of peace on earth will coincide with the time when Jesus sits on the throne.

Peace cannot take place in the absence of righteousness…Righteousness imparts peace upon the heart. A righteous man needs not fear of being caught…Righteousness leads to increase in another sense. When you live right, you are able to attract the grace of God into your life’s pursuits.

To a reasonable extent, those who have Jesus on the throne of their lives can enjoy peace even now. Righteousness imparts peace upon the heart. A righteous man needs not fear of being caught. With peace of heart comes clear thought. When your mission is clean, your heart will be free; and when you have a free mind, you will think great thoughts that will lead to great increase. Remember that as a man thinks in his heart, so is he. Righteousness leads to increase in another sense. When you live right, you are able to attract the grace of God into your life’s pursuits.