Dearly Beloved, I greet and bless everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. The blessed word that God has given for you today is from the book of Jeremiah 31:20 , “Is Ephraim my dear son? Is he a pleasant child? For since I spoke against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my bowels are troubled for him; I will surely have mercy upon him, says the LORD.”
From the above context, we see how the Lord remembered Ephraim. God loved Ephraim and wondered, “Isn’t Ephraim a precious son to Me, a delightful child? Whenever I speak against him, I certainly still think about him. Therefore, My inner being yearns for him; I will truly have compassion on him. This is the LORD’s declaration.It so happened that His beloved son Ephraim did that which was displeasing in His sight. He provoked God to anger and therefore God rebuked him.
Ephraim had forgotten the nearness of the God of Israel to them, and communion with them, which He indulges in them and shows his delight in them. God often dandles them on his knee, and comforts them, as one whom his mother comforts; he carries them in his bosom; he takes them by the hand, and teaches them to go, and lays meat before them; But in spite of his love for them (the tribe of Ephraim ) he hurt the feelings of God. He made God to speak against him and his misdeeds because he couldn’t bear them reject Him and go after other Gods. God spoke against him because of his backsliding, and rebellious childish acts, by way of threatening him with the rod, by way of rebuke. God has nothing against his children. But The Bible says, “Whom the lord loves He chastens.’’
God has many reasons against them for their correction and chastisement; However, God says, I do earnestly remember him still; God constantly as well as earnestly; remembers Him. God never forgets his children, though they may think He forgets them, He never forgets. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. God is ever mindful of his covenant with them, and remembers His promises to them; He remembers both his love to them, and their love to him.
Just as God had a plan and purpose for Ephraim God has plans to do good for you. Provided you are loyal to Him. May be until yesterday, God had ignored your requests for various reasons. You might have provoked him to anger. So He would have restrained himself from doing good to you or failed to listen to your request. But He is a God of forgiveness. We read in the Bible that God called Jonah the Prophet and told him that the wickedness of Nineveh had come before him. God warned the people to repent or He would destroy the city. So Jonah went to Nineveh and spoke to the people. The king arose from his throne covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. The people of the land believed in God and proclaimed a fast. They cried mightily to God. They said, “Who can tell if God will turn and relent and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish.” When God saw that the people had repented of their sins, He relented from the disaster, that He said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it. He spared their lives.
When I think of my own life, I must confess that my expectation was small But God’s plan for me was million times more than my expectation. Just imagine, when I was just going out to look out for a job, God made me the owner of car business God’s plan for me has been several times greater than my expectation. Thus God will bless you too when your ways please the Lord. God’s plan for His children is very much greater and higher than our thoughts. Turn to Him, reconcile with Him and you will experience a great change in your life. You will be exalted. God will prosper you before others. God Bless you.
Prayer: Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day. Lord we are delighted to learn that your thoughts towards us, is much greater and higher than our thoughts. We thank you Lord for your kind thoughts. Thank You Lord for sparing the lives of the people of Nineveh. Thank You Lord for Your forgiveness. Help us to realize our mistakes and repent of our sins and turn to God. Bless us oh God.
In Jesus Name We Pray.
Amen.
I greet and bless everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. The blessed word that God has given for you today is from the book of Psalms 11:4 , “The LORD is in His holy temple; the LORD’S throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men.”
From the above context we see how the Lord is mindful of us. His eyes beholds us all the time. That means He keeps a watch over us. His eyelids test the sons of men. Which means God searches our hearts and minds to see if we are in tune with God. Often many people go to other men when they are in trouble. But they might be disappointed. They may not be able to help you according to your expectation. But when you look up to God then He will do exceedingly abundantly, above all that you ask, think or pray for. What is your expectation about your eldest son or your younger son? What is your expectation about your husband or your daughter? What is your expectation about your job or your business? God knows all your expectation and your desires. The Bible says, Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed. He will answer him (you) from His holy temple with the saving strength of His right hand.
May God grant you according to your heart’s desire. God’s plan for you is to make a good path for your life. Therefore there is a guarantee that all your negative thoughts will be made positive, because His promises are yes and Amen in Christ Jesus. God will go before you and set right all your plans in favour of you. In spite of the many difficulties and dangers that are a part of our everyday lives – our confidence must be in the Lord, for He cares for the afflicted and He refines the righteous in His mercy and grace. Let us never forget that the Lord brings righteous judgement upon evil men and He confounds their plans and catches them in their own nets. Our strength should be found in Him alone, for His grace is sufficient for every eventuality in our everyday lives. The Lord is faithful and true to the precepts and promises that He has made to those that trust in His holy name. The Word of God stands fast forever and His promises endure from one generation to the next.
The Lord is indeed in His holy temple and His throne is in the heavens. He sovereignly rules in the kingdom of men and His eye closely examines the acts and activities of all humanity. Those that trust in His holy name discover Him to be faithful, trustworthy, long-suffering and of great goodness. Those who hold fast to the truth of His Word rejoice because He is the only secure shelter from the storms of life. David is the Biblical example of a man after God’s own heart, for despite his faults and failings he held fast to the truth of God’s holy Word. Despite the pressure and pain that he endured during his earthly journey, David knew that God has placed His Word even above His holy name.
Like us, David was faced with wars and violence, crimes and corruption, terrors and temptations, rejection and betrayals. Like David we too are faced with several problems. The Covid 19 destroyed the lives of many of our loved ones. The rise in price affects our economic condition. Many of us have lost our jobs. We have witnessed a great fall in all our undertakings. But when we look to God in prayer we have been encouraged by the word of God. We have been able to flee from the advancing danger, and take shelter in the shade of God as birds take shelter under the shade of a tree. That is why David could confidently say, “ The LORD is in His holy temple; the LORD’S throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men.” Let us therefore follow in the footsteps of king David, who is a man who lifted up his eyes above the circumstances of life and placed his confidence in the Lord – for he knew that there is no safer refuge than to be under the shadow of the Almighty.
Prayer: Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day. Lord we have placed our confidence in You alone. As we see the inevitable economic collapse, great political struggles, outrageous atrocities, national and international unrest and the spread of virus Corona that still exists and causes horror amidst the people, and we find a move to outlaw all that is good and righteous, our eyes are fixed on You and our trust is in You – for You are our Defence and Defender, our Rock and our Fortress – and we will trust in Your unfailing Word.
In Jesus Name We Pray.
Amen.
I greet and bless everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. The blessed word that God has given for you today is from the book of Job 1:5, “For Job said, “Perhaps my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.” Thus Job did continually.”
From the above context we learn that Job was more concerned about his ten children. He wondered if they walked in the fear of God. For Job was from the land of Uz and he was blameless, upright, fearing God, and turning away from evil. People usually have a tendency to focus on outward things: knowledge, reputation, ministry, education, looks, wealth and contacts. Job had many of these things if not all of them. Perhaps he had many things that others would admire and want for themselves. Job was a famous man. He was the ‘greatest man in the east.’ His large family made a big statement especially the fact that he had seven sons. He had great influence among the people around him. He could easily become his own nation, because of all his possessions. In those days the list of animals was one of the easiest ways to characterize a person’s wealth. Many animals meant provision. And of course, he had a lot of servants to care for, such a great amount of livestock.
Many people would be very content with these things. But it wasn’t that way with Job. He also had a spiritual life that outshined others. Notice how spiritually sensitive he was. Every time his children would party, he would always be there to offer a sacrifice. “For Job said, “Perhaps my sons have sinned and cursed god in their hearts.” Thus Job did continually.” How many fathers really ever get to think about the consequences of their children’s sins? They are often too busy counting their gains or mourning over their losses. Most people cannot think about success in any terms but by the outward signs of success. They do not recognize that true success comes from ‘inner’ success. We do not at all mean by this a spiritual inclination but a true heart response to God’s ways. When man’s inner life is driven by God and His purposes, then his whole life is lived out in accordance to God’s ways.
How is your focus about life ? Are you like Job or is your life all about amassing wealth, and filling your house with goods. You don’t seem to be content with what you are blessed with. Is your family as large as that of Job ? We do not know a lot of things on how he reached the zenith of life. He might have worked hard to become a wealthy person. If you want God to bless you like Job then you need to spend more time in prayer. We learn from his character that he prayed for his ten grown up children. He always feared that some harm might befall them so he prayed for them.“For Job thought that “Perhaps my sons have sinned and cursed god in their hearts.” Thus Job prayed continually for his children. He prayed for the forgiveness of their sins. He also prayed for his friends and therefore, God delivered him from his captivity.
God in the scripture says, “I the LORD search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds.” we need to present ourselves worthy of God. We need to persistently ask, “Am I a godly man at heart?” “Do I just serve God because of His good treatment towards me?” “Is my heart fully committed to the LORD?” though Job was a great man, and possessed immense wealth, we know that these possessions did not ‘make’ him. But his inner qualities distinguished him despite his great wealth. With such position, he could have chosen to do many wrong things as his friends intimated. He could have gone beyond the law and got away with it in the eyes of man. Yet, he constrained his behaviour because of his fear of the Lord. Job sets a great example for us as he breaks through the cheap materialistic view of the world and dares to live before God’s presence. His possessions did not make him great but his character, that is, his inward godly commitments that shaped his decisions. He did not strive to be wealthy but to be acceptable before God and live rightly before men and women. May God help you also to live like Job. God Bless you.
Prayer: Our loving heavenly Father, we thank you for this blessed day. Lord teach us to pray for our children, and the forgiveness of their sins. Help us to follow the good principles of Job. Help us not to strive, to be wealthy, but to be acceptable before God and men. May our inner qualities distinguish our character. Teach us to adopt the good spiritual nature of God. Remind us that God searches our hearts and our minds. And therefore let us walk in the fear of God.
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.
I greet and bless everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. The blessed word that God has given for you today is from the book of Psalms 41:1 “ Blessed are those who have regard for the weak; the Lord delivers them in times of trouble.”
The Bible says, blessed is he that considers the poor. The poor intended, are such as are poor in substance, weak in bodily strength, despised in repute, and desponding in spirit. These are mostly avoided and frequently scorned. The sick and the sorry are poor company, and the world deserts them as the Amalekite left his dying servant behind, during the battle. Those who possess divine grace receive a tender nature, and are not hardened against the poor, they undertake the cause of the downtrodden, and turn their hearts and minds seriously to the promotion of their welfare. They do not toss them a penny and go on their way, but enquire into their sorrows, sift out their cause, study the best ways for their relief, and practically come to their rescue:
Far above all others, one who considered, in tender compassion for the needy, is our Lord Jesus. For He remembered our low estate, that though he was rich, for uplifting our life. He weighed our case and came in the fullness of wisdom to execute the wonderful work of mercy by which we are redeemed from our destructions. Our wretched state of life caused Him to take pity on us. Our misery moved his mercy, and blessed be the Lord, for his attentive care and wise action towards us. He still considers us; his mercy is always available to us. So let our praises be unto Him.
The Lord will deliver those who consider the poor, in times of trouble. The compassionate friend of the poor thought of others, and therefore God will think of him. God measures to us with our own bushel. Days of trouble come even to the most generous. The promise is not that the generous saint shall have no trouble, but that he shall be preserved in it, and in due time brought out of it. And this is very true of our Lord Jesus Christ. God expects us to be considerate towards the poor. The hard hearted soul knows nothing of selfishness bears in itself a curse, it is a cancer in the heart; while liberality is happiness, and makes fat the bones.
We see how God honoured Cornelius and his family. Cornelius was a Roman centurion who is considered to be the first Gentile to convert to the faith, as told in the book of Acts. He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, “Cornelius!”, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. He sent men to visit Apostle Peter. And the men told Peter, “We have come from Cornelius the centurion. He is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people. “Cornelius was expecting the men and had called together his relatives and close friends. As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. Cornelius and all his family were baptized. Thus we see how God blessed the house of Cornelius because he considered the poor and gave alms. May God help you also to be kind generous and consider the poor, the orphans and the widows . God Bless you.
Prayer: Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day. Thank You Lord for teaching us through this message the importance of helping the poor. Give us a heart to consider the poor and the down trodden. The widows and orphans. Thank You Lord for helping us in trouble because we show kindness to the poor. May we not toss them a penny and go on our way, but enquire into their sorrows, sift out their cause, study the best ways for their relief, and practically come to their rescue
In Jesus Name We Pray.
Amen.
I greet and bless everyone in the name of Jesus Christ our God, who created and formed us and who never ever forgets us. The blessed word that God has given for you, today is from the book of Jeremiah 29:11, “ For I know the thoughts that I think towards, you thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
From the above context we see how the Lord, thinks about us and his thoughts towards us is different from ours and His thoughts are of peace and not of evil. He wants to give you a future, and a hope. Many of you reading this message are having great expectation and desires and want it to be fulfilled. So you are reading this message with much plans in your mind, regarding the future of your children and your that of yours too. Every individual has problems in life. And therefore you expect God to do something for you or your children. It is true that each one of you wants to do well in life.
You are looking for a change, you are expecting some kind of blessing to happen in your life. You are reading this message with great faith that God would, do something good for you. Therefore God, who is able to read your mind set and also understand your thoughts afar off, has decided to come down and give you the desires of your heart, according to your expectation. May be you are thinking how nice it would be if God did what you wanted to have concerning your family, your children, your business, your future. Every individual has plans. The children, youngsters, women, men of all age be it young or old. You may be even senior citizens, or preachers or someone in the ministry, but all have plans, desires and wants that need to be fulfilled. Some hope and have expectation within your mind and your heart. And God is fully aware of your plans and intentions. God says, “I know the thoughts that I think towards you. They are thoughts of peace and not of evil. ”He who knows your frame and has drawn you in the palm of His hands will he not know your thoughts?
God knows what you have been thinking over many months, many years, may be over a period of sixty years, or for the past six months and what you have been thinking six hours ago or even six minutes ago. He is aware of all your thinking. He knows all your thoughts. There is nothing hidden from His sight. You are saying, “Will anything good happen in my life? Or will my life go a waste? Will I pass my days like vapour? or like smoke? What will God do for me a worm and reproach of all men? Well our God is an awesome God. He is Bigger than all your problems, He does things beyond our thinking. Saul, he was an ordinary man and was out in search of his ass, or donkey, met prophet Samuel on his way. God had already spoken to the prophet, about Saul who was well built, tall and handsome and God had chosen him to be the first king of Israel because the people of Israel wanted a king for themselves like all other nations. And Saul who went in search of his donkey was anointed as the king of Israel. Saul never thought of becoming the king, But God had a plan for him that was for his good and not for evil. Thus we see that God has a plan for each one of us that will be for our good and not for evil. Believe in God with all your heart and mind then He will change the situation of your life within a moment. Believe and receive the blessing of God.
Prayer: Our loving heavenly Father, we thank You for this blessed day. Dear Lord we thank you for your thoughts towards us, thoughts of peace and not of evil. You have thoughts about us, to give us a future and a hope. Help us to lean on God and trust Him at all times. Believe that He will do all things well for us and our children. Make us to know Your will for us in our lives and not be hasty in our decision and come to wrong conclusion about God’s plan for us.
In Jesus name we pray,
Amen.
