OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL...

DATE: FRIDAY 2ND JUNE 2017

THEME: BELIEVE AND DOUBT NOT

Memorise:

And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season. Luke 1:20

Read: Luke 1:5-20

1:5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.

1:6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

1:7 And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.

1:8 And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his course,

1:9 According to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.

1:10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.

1:11 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

1:12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

1:13 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou
shalt call his name John.

1:14 And thou shalt havejoy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.

1:15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy
Ghost, even from his mother's womb.

1:16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God.

1:17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of thejust; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

1:18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for l am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.

1:19 And the angel answering said unto him, | am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to
shew thee these glad tidings.

1:20 And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.

MESSAGE

Do you know that God is a person and not a force? Because He is a person, He has emotions. His emotions are manifested in Him being pleased or displeased, happy or grieved, and so on. Those who are wise will seek to do the things that will make God respond to them with a favourable emotion. One way you can upset God is by doubting Him. According to Hebrews 11:6, before approaching God, you must believe that He exists and that He will respond to your call. It is pretty impossible to relate with God without faith. Infact, Romans 14:23b says,
"... for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.''

Once you give room to doubt as regards to who God is and what He can do, you have opened the door to sin. How can the One who made the heavens and earth make a promise to you and you will not believe Him? How can the One who brought water out of a rock, and the One who turned a valley of dry, useless bones into a full-bodied army not be trusted (Exodus 17:5-6, Ezekiel 37:1-10)? If He could resurrect a whole army, resurrecting you is simply a walk in the park for Him. lt is a great insult to doubt that God can do what He says He will do. Are you living by faith or in doubt?

God feels personally displeased when we doubt Him. It is a worse situation when His servants who should know Him better, get caught up in the web of unbelief. It is important to know that God responds to your doubts and unbelief. When God sent Angel Gabriel to tell Zacharias that his aged wife would have a baby, he found it difficult to believe because they had both grown old. For the reason of his unbelief, he was struck with dumbness until the prophecy was fulfilled. Are you trusting God for the fruit of the womb but you are now over 40 or even 50 years old? Have you like Zacharias given up on the possibility of having a child? Do not give up on God! Always remember this: if God chooses to give you a baby at the age of 70, He will definitely renew your body and make it able to carry the baby. Your age will definitely not diminish, but your body will be renewed and made younger. Trust Him. At the point when some people already have their miracle quite close to them, they suddenly begin to doubt God and hence destroy the process. Stop doubting God! You can never get anything good from it.

Key Point:

You are either in faith or in doubt but definitely not in both. Where are you?

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Acts 24-26
Jeremiah 40:7-41:3

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE

HYMN 1: MY FAITH LOOKS UP TO THEE

1. My faith looks up to Thee,
Thou Lamb of Calvary,
Saviour divine!
Now hear me while I pray,
Take all my guilt away,
Oh, let me from this day
Be wholly Thine!

2. May Thy rich grace impart
Strength to my fainting heart,
My zeal inspire!
As Thou hast died for me,
Oh, may my love to Thee
Pure, warm, and changeless be,
A living fire!

3. While life’s dark maze I tread,
And griefs around me spread,
Be Thou my guide;
Bid darkness turn to day,
Wipe sorrow’s tears away,
Nor let me ever stray
From Thee aside.

4.When life’s swift race is run,
Death’s cold work almost done
Be near to me.
Blest Saviour, then in love,
Fear and distrust remove;
Oh, bear me safe above,
A ransomed soul!

God bless you Sir

Prayer Points on Today's Open Heavens: ( Friday, June 2nd, 2017) - BELIEVE AND DOUBT NOT

1.Thank you, Father, for the grace to be counted among the living, today, in Jesus' name.

2.I worship you, my Father, for, you alone, can turn every hopeless situation in my life, around.

3.Father, in anyway, l have fallen short of your glory, please, have mercy and forgive me.

4.Father, let every spirit of doubt and unbelief, in my life be consumed, by your fire, in Jesus' name.

5.Father, give me peace and rest of mind, over everything that is causing me fear and anxiety, in Jesus' name.

6.Father, make me to hear joy and gladness, today, that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice, in Jesus' name.

7.Father, let every plan and expectation, of the enemies, concerning my life, family and ministry, be upturned, through divine intervention, in Jesus' name.

8.Father, no matter, the challenges that l may face in life, let me never give up serving and doing your Will, in Jesus' name.

9.Father, let every yoke of impossibility, in my life be broken today, in Jesus' name.

10.Father, let all your promises for my life and destiny, come to fulfilment, no matter, the opposition from the pit of hell, in Jesus' name.

11.Father, give me a miracle that will dumbfound, and put all my enemies, to shame, in Jesus' name.

12.Your Personal petitions.
( Philippians 4:6)
13.In Jesus' name I pray.
(John 14:13-14; 15:16)
14.Thank you Father for answered prayers.
(1 Thessalonians 5:18).
#GodBlessOurNation