₦airaland Forum

The Bible says clearly in Romans 13:3 that if you do the right things, you should not be afraid of the government or their agencies. For instance, when a driver becomes afraid on seeing a traffic official, it is most likely that he or she has done something critical or committed a traffic offence. If you fidget when you learn that tax officials are coming to meet you, it probably means that you have been robbing the government, and Jesus said in Matthew 22:21 that you should give to Ceasar (the government) what belongs to Ceasar. Rather than being afraid, why not just do the right thing? Stay in the right and do good so that you will never be afraid of government officials.

In certain regions, some people are afraid of government officials, not because they are guilty of any wrongdoing, but because of racism or oppression. If a government official decides to use his or her authority to terrorise you, don’t be afraid of such a person. Rather, take the matter to God, and He will fight for you. You must, however, have built a culture of depending on God before trouble comes.

Many years ago, I heard that the military government that was ruling my country at the time was planning to arrest me because the head of the government was told by his spiritualists that my prayers were hindering their self-centred agenda for the country. At first, I was afraid, but that night, I handed the matter over to God, and in less than one week, the government official who wanted to kill me was dead. If you fear God and always do the right things, He will fight for you.

In Daniel 3:16, the three Hebrew boys defied the evil order of the king, and God protected them from his wrath. God protected them because they chose to fear Him and not man. When Herod began to terrorise the church, killing James and imprisoning Peter, the Christians began to pray without ceasing. Their prayers worked great wonders; Peter was freed miraculously on the eve of the day he was to be executed, and Herod was later eaten by worms (Acts 12:1-23).

Beloved, please stay away from anything that will put you in a position of being afraid of the government. However, if you have not done anything wrong and a government official decides to terrorise you for whatever reason, simply hand him or her over to God, and He will surely protect you.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

On the same day I graduated from the University of Ife in 1967, the then Ooni of Ife, the traditional ruler of the city, was given an honorary doctorate degree. It was a very glorious occasion, and that day, I told my closest friend, “One day, I too will get an honorary doctorate degree from this university.” He looked at me, laughed, and said, “If it’s possible to earn it by studying, I would agree with you because you’re intelligent, but you’re not qualified to be honoured. Honorary doctorate degrees are not given to every Tom, Dick, and Harry.” What he said appeared to be true at the time because I didn’t look like someone who could be given an honorary doctorate degree. My friend and I were so ordinary that we celebrated our graduation by eating amala and ponmo, a meal made from yam flour and dry cowhide, at a motorpark. Years passed, and one day, I got a letter from the university that the council had decided to award me an honorary doctorate degree.

There is no height you cannot reach if you remain close to God and work hard towards your goals. In Genesis 37:5-10, Joseph dreamt of himself as a great ruler. At that time, even his father didn’t consider him mature enough to work with his brothers to shepherd the family’s flock (Genesis 37:12-13). Later on in life, he found himself as a slave, and he worked hard in that role while ensuring that he did not offend God (Genesis 39:9). Before long, he went from being a prisoner to becoming the Prime Minister of a country considered the world’s superpower at the time.

In 1 Samuel, when Samuel went to anoint a king among the sons of Jesse, David was not even presented among his brothers initially. However, by 2 Samuel, he was already sitting on the throne as Israel’s king. Even when his life was threatened by Saul, he did not give up or lose his focus. Some people turn every little challenge into an excuse for not being able to achieve their goals. Excuses are for failures; highflyers will use their challenges as fuel to reach their goals.

Beloved, people who fulfil their purposes and dreams are single-minded in their pursuits. They refuse to be distracted by anything until they achieve the things they have conceived in their minds. Focus on your goals, work hard, and don’t give up. Trust in God, and He will help you to achieve your dreams.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Daniel had an excellent spirit upon him. The Spirit of God made him so excellent that the king wanted to put him in charge of the affairs of the entire kingdom (Daniel 6:1-3). Nobody in the whole kingdom could be compared to Daniel. He left the mark of God’s presence and wisdom everywhere he went.

While it is good to register for courses and get certifications, what makes you excel is the Holy Spirit. When the Spirit of the Lord comes upon you and overshadows you, you will become sought after by many. Instead of turning you down, many people and organisations will seek to be associated with you, and you will have to choose between them.

When we built the first RCCG auditorium near the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, it was considered the biggest auditorium in Africa at that time. Some of my children came to tell me that we didn’t need to worry anymore about space, and I laughed. Two years later, we had to expand it. A year later, we had to double the size of the auditorium, and in the year after that, we had to expand it further. We keep expanding because I can’t settle for less than what God has in store for us. A fellow with an excellent spirit never settles for mediocrity, and I know what God has shown me. People who have an excellent spirit always want more of God. They are not satisfied with yesterday’s fellowship because God’s mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23).

Daniel’s excellence didn’t only show in his work and responsibilities; it also showed in his relationship with God. When the king decreed that nobody should pray to any other being apart from him, Daniel was too intimate and dedicated to God to obey that command. Some other fellows might have said, “The command is only for thirty days; after that, I can resume my prayers,” but not Daniel. He didn’t want less of God, and this fervent pursuit made him excellent in all aspects of life.

Beloved, you can’t claim to be excellent in your work or studies if you are slothful in your service to God and your relationship with Him. I pray that the spirit of excellence will distinguish you in every area of life, in Jesus’ name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In my travels around the world to preach the gospel, I have discovered that not all presidents are the same. I once visited a small country where the total number of policemen in the country was twenty. That nation is recognised by the United Nations, so when nations gather at the United Nations General Assembly, the president also shows up. However, you cannot compare that president to the president of a country that has over 40,000 policemen. In the same way, you cannot compare Jesus to any earthly leader. He is the President of presidents (Revelation 19:16).

Daniel 4:32 says that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men. If you want doors to open to you, you should befriend President Jesus. He has a name that is above every other name, and all things in heaven, on earth, and underneath the earth should bow when His name is mentioned (Philippians 2:9-11). No matter how powerful a president is, if he or she pronounces a curfew, it will only be effective within his or her territory. However, Jesus has influence all over the world, in heaven, and even underneath the earth. You should aim to be so intimate with Him that everywhere you appear, doors will open unto you as though President Jesus Himself is the One who has appeared.

You can become intimate with God by loving His laws. David, the man after God’s heart, said, “O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day” (Psalm 119:97). When you love someone, you will always want to spend time with that person. God’s laws are His principles, and they can be found in His word. As you meditate on them and allow them to fill your heart, you will become more intimate with His person, abilities, and power. David also said that those who love God’s law have great peace, and nothing shall offend them (Psalm 119:165). If nothing offends you, it means that nothing shakes or moves you.

President Jesus is the Prince of peace, and those who are intimate with Him will always enjoy peace no matter the situations surrounding them. No matter how terrible the economy of a nation gets, those in a president’s household are confident that they will always have something to eat. If this is true for earthly presidents, how much more with President Jesus, who presides over an unshakable kingdom and economy (Hebrews 12:28)?
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Years ago, when my Father in the Lord was alive, he sent a pastor to start a parish in Osogbo (a town in Western Nigeria). The parish began to prosper, and the pastor felt that since he planted it, he could turn it into his own ministry. He removed the signboard of The Redeemed Christian Church of God and put that of his new ministry. When Papa heard about it, he appealed to the pastor to retrace his steps, but he refused. He said, “What do you mean? I am the pastor here. I started the work. The people are my sheep.” Papa said, “But we ordained you, and sent you here to start the work in the name of The Redeemed Christian Church of God. More so, you are not their saviour. The church belongs to the One who saved them. It is not yours or mine.” However, the pastor stubbornly insisted. Then, Papa said, “No problem, shall we pray?” As they prayed, a wind blew as if it was going to rain, and by the following morning, the pastor was covered in leprosy from head to toe.

When the King of kings owns something, don’t take it as yours. When you do, you are toying with fire. The pastor in the story I shared above thought he could take what belonged to God and go scot-free. When someone has exclusive rights to something, no other person can claim ownership of that thing. God has exclusive rights to the earth, its fullness and all its inhabitants (Psalm 24:1). This means that He is in charge of the earth and oversees all that happens in it. In Luke 12:16-20, when the man that Jesus called the rich fool talked about his soul as if he owned it, he lost his life that same night.

Just as God doesn’t share His ownership of the earth, He doesn’t share His glory. His glory belongs to Him, and anyone who tries to steal it from Him will get into big trouble. When God does anything through you, be quick to return all the glory to Him because it does not belong to you. In Daniel 4:1-37, Nebuchadnezzar attempted to attribute God’s glory to himself, and he became a beast in the forest for seven years. God touched his heart and replaced it with a beast’s heart, and all his boasting stopped.

Beloved, God is jealous about what belongs to Him; never try to claim it for yourself.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

While I was a lecturer at one of the universities in Nigeria, there was a man who was not promoted for 12 years because somebody hid his file. When God was going to restore all this man had lost, the head of his department was changed, and his replacement asked to see the files of all staff in the department. They searched for this man’s file until they dug it out from where it had been hidden. When his file was opened, they discovered that he should have been promoted at least twice, so they gave him a double promotion.

God can restore all the years you seem to have lost. He can reverse the irreversible and bring back the opportunities you missed in the past. In Matthew 12:9-13, Jesus entered the temple and found a man with a withered hand. Before Jesus left the temple that day, He ensured that the man’s withered hand received life and was divinely restored. In the name that is above every other name, if there is anything that is withered in your life, it will receive an instant restoration today.

Some Christians’ walk with God can also be described as withered. For example, when a Christian who used to spend hours in God’s presence can hardly spend up to thirty minutes with Him in prayer, such a Christian’s walk with God is withered. Some Christians could heal the sick and cast out demons in Jesus’ name in the past, but now, they have become victims of sicknesses and demonic oppression. If you are reading this devotional and your walk with God has withered, I pray that you will experience a divine restoration today, in Jesus’ name. The Lord will breathe afresh into you and cause you to experience a greater realm of glory than the former days (Haggai 2:9).

Job said that no matter how badly a tree has been cut, as long as its stump is in the ground and it can perceive the scent of water, there is hope for it (Job 14:7-9). Beloved, since you are still alive to read this today, it means that there is hope for you concerning any withered situation that might exist in your life. All you have to do is submit completely to the Great Restorer and seek His face for help. He will step into your situation and restore all that you might have lost, in Jesus’ name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Over the past two days, I discussed the power words; today, I will focus on how words can heal.

As a Christian, you should always be gracious with your words (Ephesians 4:29). You should be generous with giving compliments and telling people encouraging words. Simply saying things like, “I like your haircut,” can bring people out of sadness and put a smile on their faces. Your compliments must, however, be genuine because God will punish those who flatter others with their words (Psalm 12:3).

In Ruth 2:1, Boaz was described as a mighty man of wealth. Unlike some wealthy people who look down on their workers and speak rashly to them, Boaz encouraged his workers with his words, and they responded pleasantly (Ruth 2:4). I believe this is partly responsible for Boaz’s successful business. If you are a business owner and you curse or talk down on your workers, you are indirectly also cursing the work of your hands because they are the ones managing it for you.

Nabal, unlike Boaz, was a man who spoke negative words. When David sent his men to ask him to give them something, his response was terrible. He spoke harshly to the men and if his wife, Abigail, hadn’t intervened by going without his consent to soothe David with her words, everyone in his family would have been destroyed. While Nabal’s words stirred up David’s anger and made him gather his men to go against the former’s household, Abigail’s words were seasoned with salt and kept her family from destruction (1 Samuel 25:1-35).

When you speak, what effect do your words have? Do they heal or destroy? Solomon said, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue…” (Proverbs 18:21). Apostle Paul, in Colossians 4:6, tells us to make sure that our speech is always with grace and seasoned with salt. Seasoning makes food more enjoyable. A fellow whose speech is well-seasoned will always attract others to himself or herself because people go to places where they are appreciated and motivated. When the woman caught in the act of adultery in John 8:1-11 was brought to Jesus, in the midst of many condemning words from other people, His words, “Go and sin no more,” brought her the liberty that she needed (John 8:11).

Beloved, let your words bring unbelievers to Jesus and show them His grace. Do not let your words be the reason people reject the gospel.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Indeed, words are very powerful. For example, if you are married, there are certain statements you must never make to your spouse because even after forgiving you, it will take the grace of God for him or her to forget them, and this might affect the marriage for a long time. For instance, you should never tell your spouse that you regret marrying him or her. You should also never compare your spouse with other people or tag them as enemies of progress. The damage from such statements may be irreparable because the self-esteem of your spouse might have been destroyed. Whenever you are angry, it is better to keep quiet than to say things you will later regret. If you must speak, always ensure that you address the issue at hand and not the person.

The devil always likes to fuel quarrels to make people say things that will negatively affect one or more of the parties involved. Playing the blame game and attacking people verbally only worsens problems.

But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.
Galatians 5:15

When people bite and devour each other with wrong and negative words, they usually end up destroying their relationships. Christians must not be ignorant of the devices of the devil so that he doesn’t take advantage of them (2 Corinthians 2:11). Often, the devil wants relationships to be full of strife so that he can be free to do whatever he wants, and when people say hurtful words to one another, they stir up strife. If you do not want the devil’s involvement in your relationships, you should take out the wood of wrong and negative words whenever there are disagreements because if there is no wood, the fire will go out. Instead of using harsh words when you have a disagreement with someone, your responses should be soft because a soft answer will always turn away wrath (Proverbs 15:1).

Beloved, if someone close to you has said hurtful words to you in the past, I plead on the person’s behalf that you should forgive him or her. Please don’t let the words bring permanent damage to yourself or your relationship with that fellow. If you are in this situation, I declare your healing today, and if you have lost any God-given relationships, may the Almighty God restore them in the name of Jesus.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

When I got married and had children, things were really difficult for me and my young family. However, I would always tell my wife to brace up because things would not remain tough forever. I never allowed any negative confession to come out of my mouth because I knew that they would negatively impact our future. When the Shunammite woman lost her son, she never allowed any negative word to come out of her mouth. All she kept saying was, “It shall be well” and “It is well” (2 Kings 4:23,26). She refused to utter negative words that would aid what the devil was trying to achieve. Instead, she kept speaking what she wanted until everything became well indeed.

Words are very powerful. In Africa, the elders say that they are like an egg, meaning that once they are uttered, their impact cannot be reversed. You must be careful what you say and how you say it. When you speak negative words, the damage they cause may be irreparable, even if you are genuinely sorry about uttering them. Don’t speak when you are extremely angry or very excited because you may say the wrong things. You should also be careful with your words whenever you are sad because there is power in your tongue. The power of life and death lies in the tongue (Proverbs 18:21), and you must be intentional about the words you speak.

Proverbs 6:2 says, “Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.” No matter what happens, always think before you talk. Also, always let your words be in line with God’s word. The word of God is powerful; it can break every negative word that has been spoken over your life and destiny. Jabez was a newborn baby when his mother made a negative pronouncement over him. She set him up for a life of sorrow and hardship because she spoke when she was in pain. Thankfully, Jabez rejected sorrow and hardship by crying to God to bless him, and God turned his life around (1 Chronicles 4:9-10).

Beloved, whatever you say is what you will get; therefore, use your tongue wisely. If you have made negative pronouncements over your life or your children’s lives, ask God for mercy and begin to overwrite them with God’s word. I pray that His word will continually lift you up and bless all that concerns you, in Jesus’ name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

During my regular morning prayer walk one day, I remembered a joke. I was preparing for a ministers’ conference, so l tried to push the joke out of my thoughts. However, I sensed that God wanted to tell me something through the joke, so I allowed myself to think about it. During the conference, I shared the joke, which goes thus: A husband and his wife had been quarrelling for a long time. Things got so bad that they said they wouldn’t talk to each other anymore. One night, the husband, who was a heavy sleeper, wrote a note for his wife, “Darling, I have to catch a plane at 8am. Please wake me at 6am.” He placed the note on his wife’s side of the bed and slept. When he woke up the following morning, it was 8am, and his wife had gone to work. He was furious, and as he fumed, he saw a note on his side of the bed where his wife wrote, “Darling, wake up. It’s 6am.” After sharing the joke, God told me, “Tell My people: I won’t talk to those of you who don’t talk to Me.” God loves it when you talk to Him, and when you do, you invite Him to also speak with you.

When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, the first thing He said was, “When you pray, say, ‘Our Father…” (Luke 11:2). No father loves it when his children don’t talk to him. As a father, I enjoy it when my children spend time with me. 1 John 3:1 says that the Father has bestowed such great love on you by calling you His son. John 8:35 says that a servant doesn’t abide in the house, but a son abides forever. As God’s precious child, you have access to Him at all times. You can call on Him and talk to Him about anything, and He will respond.

If you’re a child of God, seek to be more intimate with your Father every day (Philippians 3:10). If, however, you’re not yet a child of God, then you cannot have access to Him until you acknowledge Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. If you were once a Christian but have backslidden and disconnected yourself from God like the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32), run back into His waiting arms.

Beloved, God longs and seeks for His children to worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:23). Fulfil His desire by speaking with Him continually.

Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In a storm, there is always so much turmoil, but right in the middle of it is the part called ‘the eye of the storm’, which is usually peaceful and calm. When you are connected to the Almighty God, no matter how much trouble surrounds you, you will always experience peace and calm.

In 1 Kings 17:1, rivers dried up, and people suffered. There was so much hunger in the land, yet God provided for Elijah at all times. At one point, God sent ravens to bring him bread and meat every morning and evening. When the brook dried up, God sent him to a widow to sustain him (1 Kings 17:9). When you are connected to the King of kings, your experience will always be different from that of others around you. For example, during an economic downturn, when people are anxious about their finances, a child of God will be calm, knowing that his or her economy is in Zion, where the streets are made of gold.

In Mark 4:35-41, when Jesus and His disciples were travelling on the sea, a storm arose, but Jesus slept peacefully through it because He is connected to the Father. While the disciples were scared of perishing, He slept like a baby with a pillow (Mark 4:38). Paul also faced a huge storm, and in the midst of it, while the other people on the ship spoke of dying, he spoke of life and deliverance because God sent His angel to assure him of safety (Acts 27:20-25). His connection with God gave him the assurance that nothing evil would befall him.

Beloved, if you are in a storm and you don’t want to be swept away, you must remain connected to God. What can destroy this connection is sin. Isaiah 59:1-2 says that there is always a gap between sinners and God, and even though His arms are everlasting (Deuteronomy 33:27), they cannot reach the sinners. When people allow sin into their lives, they leave the centre of God’s will where peace and joy reign.

When Jonah chose to go to Tarshish in disobedience to God, a storm arose, and he found himself in the belly of a big fish (Jonah 1:1-17). Sin will always bring a fellow into negative situations, and that is why you must not toy with it at all. Economies and nations will fail, but if you want to keep blossoming and flourishing amidst negative reports, you must shun sin and remain connected to God.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

PRAYERS FOR YOUTHS

1. Father, I thank You for all the Christian youths across the world. Thank You for this new generation that You have chosen to show forth Your glory.

2. Father, please let all the youths in my community and around the world who are yet to accept Jesus as their Lord and Saviour be convicted by the Holy Spirit to surrender their lives to You.

3. Father, please guide the youths as they make decisions in their education, careers, relationships, and other areas of life. Help them to make the right decisions in line with Your will for their lives, in Jesus’ name.

4. Father, please keep the youths focused on You. Help them to grow deeper in love with You, in Jesus’ name.

5. Father, please help the youths break all negative generational patterns. May they not repeat the mistakes of past generations, in Jesus’ name.

6. Lord, I come against any agenda of the enemy concerning the youths around me. They will not die, but they will live to show forth the glory of God and become terrors to the kingdom of darkness, in Jesus’ name.

7. Lord, please help the youths overcome the devil’s plans to indoctrinate them with perverse morals and cultures. I decree that his evil doctrines will have no influence over them, in Jesus’ name.

8. Father, please set the youths on fire for You. Let them rise in every part of the world, speaking boldly about You and influencing their communities for Your Kingdom, in Jesus’ name.

9. Father, please let Your excellent Spirit rest on every youth. Bless them with Your wisdom and creativity, and make them agents of positive change in their societies, in Jesus’ name.

10. Father, please strengthen the youths to overcome temptations, depression, stress, and anxiety. Empower them with good health and a sound mind to deal with all of life’s challenges, in Jesus’ name.

11. Father, help the youths develop the right sense of responsibility that will make them excellent leaders, in Jesus’ name.

12. Your personal prayer points for the youths around you.

Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

God designed the marriage institution to be sacred (Genesis 2:24), but unfortunately, many people in the world today do not see it that way. Many married couples treat their businesses and careers better than their marriages, and expectedly, the divorce rate has become alarming across the world. God hates divorce (Malachi 2:16); hence, His children should never toy with it. When a couple gets divorced, they go against God’s commandment not to separate what He has joined together.

I know some people seek divorce because they consider their marriages ‘hell on earth’. While I sympathise with them, the truth is that no amount of pain on earth can be compared to an eternity in hell. Divorce is not God’s will; it is the hardness of man’s heart that made Moses permit it among the Israelites (Matthew 19:3-9).

The pain of divorce is also often very deep. It negatively affects families and can be felt for several generations. It opens doors to many vices and a lot of the decadence we see in the world today. Yes, spouses should separate when lives are threatened and then trust God for a full restoration of the family.

Married couples must stay rooted in the basics of marriage (Ephesians 5:22-33) just as successful athletes who want to remain relevant must stick to the basics of their sports. Unconditional love and submission, sacrifice, reverence, and God’s word are the basics of marriage; if couples stick to them, they will experience bliss and peace in their marriages.

Married couples must pray together regularly. They must remain vigilant and never be ignorant of the devil’s devices (2 Corinthians 2:11). Sometimes, when the devil is after a married couple with children, his main target is not the couple themselves but their children since he knows that broken homes often, if not always, negatively affect children. Married couples should defend their homes and protect their children with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Beloved, if you are married, consistently stand in the gap for your marriage with prayers. God has restored many ‘dead’ marriages because one or both parties prayed and acted according to His word concerning their marriage. If you are planning to get married, you must prayerfully seek God’s counsel before doing so. For Christian marriages to be successful, couples must ensure that their marriage is rooted in God’s word and also ensure that they work together to nurture it with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

I’ll conclude my discussion on this topic by stating that God wants His children to enjoy their marriages, as we see in Mark 10:8. However, for this to happen, they must cleave to their spouses. When you want to glue two objects, they must be in close proximity. When couples live in different states or countries for a long period of time, their children are usually affected negatively and may end up being raised by only one parent or other people. God instructed parents to train their children (Proverbs 22:6), but this cannot be effectively done virtually or by proxy. Parents’ physical presence greatly impacts the quality of training and also strengthens the bond between them and their children. When both parents live in the same house with their children, it is easier for the couple to monitor and correct them as required.

Zeruiah’s story is one of the most pathetic accounts about families in the Bible. Zeruiah was David’s sister, and she had three sons – Joab, Abishai and Asahel. Throughout the Bible, I observed that there was no mention of their father (1 Chronicles 2:16), and I’m inclined to think that this was because he was not as involved in the family as a good father should be. Although the boys grew up to become mighty men, they exhibited weaknesses that became their undoing. Asahel was a swift runner, and at one time, he ran until he was killed (2 Samuel 2:12-32). Joab’s hot temper made him go against his boss and uncle, David, until David placed a curse on him (2 Samuel 3:26-29). Abishai was rash in his attempt to kill God’s anointed, Saul, and David had to caution him (1 Samuel 26:5-12). Another person in the Bible whose children didn’t turn out well was Eli. In my studies, I observed that there was no mention of his wife’s role in raising their children, so I was not surprised that they became sons of Belial (1 Samuel 2:12).

Living in different locations might be unavoidable for married couples sometimes, but this should only be for short periods of time. Single parenting is highly challenging, and I pray that God will give all single parents the strength and wisdom to raise their children according to His will. When both parents are alive and well, it is important that they work together to raise their children in the way of the Lord.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Today, I will continue my discussion on why spouses should cleave together. When a married couple live far apart from each other for a long period of time, they will both begin to change according to their different environments without realising it. As people grow older and have new experiences, they change, and if a married couple are not going through these experiences together, they may become strangers to each other after a while. By the time such couples finally come together, they will likely be shocked by their differences.

It is difficult to cleave as one with someone you are not living with. What creates strong bonds between some siblings is not just the fact that they were born by the same parents but that they grew up together and went through certain experiences together. This is also why childhood friends have a strong bond. If you really want to cleave as one with your spouse, you need to live through experiences together. You may say, “We talk about our day on the phone every evening,” but that is not the same as physical interaction.

When you study the Bible, you will see that couples who relocated did so together. When Abraham relocated to Egypt, he went with Sarah (Genesis 13:1). When Elimelech went to Moab in search of greener pastures, he went with his wife, Naomi (Ruth 1:1). Although their story was tragic, the lesson is that relocation should be a joint venture. When the angel appeared to Joseph to take Jesus to Egypt because of Herod’s murderous intention, the family went together (Matthew 2:13-14). There may be some unavoidable situations that may require one partner to travel to another location first. However, in such situations, the family should not stay apart for more than six months before they come back together again.

It is not healthy for couples to cause a separation in their marriage just because they want to relocate to another location they consider to be ‘greener pastures’. Anything that will affect the unity of a marriage shouldn’t be considered or permitted. Couples should do everything possible to stay together because God commands it (Mark 10:9). When they are together, it is easier to pray and agree on certain matters. However, when they are in different countries with different time zones, it is more difficult. Cleaving to one’s spouse requires being intentional about bonding, being united, and living through experiences together.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

We live in a fast-paced world where many people are chasing wealth and riches at all costs. As a result, many marriages are suffering. In some cases, a husband works in a different state or country while the rest of his family lives in another state or country. Long distance courtships have existed for a long time, but now, we have long-distance marriages. In truth, however, a long-distance marriage isn’t healthy for any family. A couple can have a short-term arrangement for them to be apart for unavoidable reasons, but this should not be for long.

Many cases of infidelity in marriage result from the absence of one spouse. Sometimes, even married couples that live together practice long-distance marriages. This might be because one spouse leaves for work very early in the morning and gets back very late at night. Such couples are living separate lives, and one or both of the spouses are likely to form connections with the people they spend most of their time with in their spouse’s absence. Such connections can turn into ungodly affairs.

As a married fellow, if you notice that you prefer talking to other people than talking to your spouse, there is fire on the mountain. When you prefer spending time outside your home rather than with your spouse, there is trouble. When you prefer discussing intimate issues with your ‘friends’ of the opposite sex instead of your spouse, you should retrace your steps and work on fixing whatever issues that exist in your marriage. Don’t deceive yourself by saying, “I’m not doing anything with that fellow; we are just friends.” Most extra-marital relationships start from casual friendships, and after a while, the devil introduces temptations that can lead to sinful acts. I pray that you will overcome any temptation that can destroy your marriage, in Jesus’ name.

If you’re married, spend more time with your spouse and make him or her your confidant. Go out to fun places and take frequent walks together. At least once a month, dress up and go on a date. Book a hotel room or a private lodge for a weekend at least once every year so you can spend quality time with your spouse, away from all distractions. After your relationship with God, your relationship with your spouse is the most important in your life because God has designed you both to become one, as Genesis 2:24 points out. Be intentional about cleaving to your spouse, and God will bless your marriage, in Jesus’ name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

The first equation in what I call the ‘mathematics of marriage’ states that ‘Love is blind. Proverbs 10:12 says that love covers a multitude of sins; therefore, married people should not complain about all of their spouse’s faults. To deflect offences, they must learn to accommodate their shortcomings.

Some people are known to call their spouses ‘angels’ affectionately. Though I am not against this, another equation states that ‘Angels don’t eat jollof rice.’ This is a humorous way of stating that human beings are not angels and, hence, are prone to human mistakes. It is important that married people do not have unreasonable expectations of their spouses that will keep them in a state of being constantly offended. If you’re married or about to get married, you must understand that you and your spouse will offend each other many times in your marriage. However, knowing how to deflect those offences and turn them around will help you a lot.

Years ago, I was preparing for a trip, and my wife wanted to accompany me to the airport. I knew she was likely going to delay me, so I said, “A car will move faster if it is not pulling a trailer behind it.” She responded, “Who’s the trailer?” I could sense that she was offended by what I said, so I quickly said, “I’m the trailer; you’re the car. I don’t want to slow you down.” She laughed and said, “You’re not serious.” If I didn’t know how to turn the situation around, a fight could have started from there. It is important for married people to know when to stop talking or say things that will diffuse the tension when their partners are about to get offended.

James 1:19 is a perfect template for deflecting offences in marriage. When you are swift to hear, you will know how to patiently listen to your spouse without looking for ways to attack him or her or defend yourself unnecessarily. Being slow to speak is knowing that sometimes, it is unwise to say everything on your mind. Lastly, any fellow who is slow to anger will not easily get offended.

Beloved, if you want to have a marriage with fewer fights and offences, you must learn not to have unreasonable expectations of your spouse. You must also learn to accommodate your spouse’s weaknesses while you work patiently with him or her to get better through the help of the Holy Spirit.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Marriage is a school where you study a subject called ‘the spouse’. People need to study their spouses in order to discover what makes them happy and what offends them. Spouses also need to learn how to support each other to achieve their goals and succeed in all aspects of life.

If you are married, understanding your spouse will help you avoid offence, especially when you know his or her weaknesses. For example, a man who knows that his wife struggles with managing time should not be offended whenever she takes her time to get ready for outings. Instead, he should help her to manage her time however he can. Likewise, a woman who knows that her husband struggles to express his feelings should be more patient with him and encourage him to be more open with her. In marriage, you must seek to understand your spouse’s strengths and weaknesses so you can work together to make the best of your union.

When I got married to my wife, we made a vow never to be angry at the same time. We agreed that whenever one of us gets angry, the other partner should keep quiet. One day, we were travelling to Lagos from llesha, another town in Western Nigeria, when my wife got angry about something and expressed her feelings to me. I knew she was right, but l was also angry. As I was driving, she continued to express her anger, but I could not say anything to her because of our vow. When I couldn’t take it anymore, I parked the car and walked away, leaving her inside. After walking for a while, l stopped at a village and bought some fruits. I returned to the car and gave them to her. My wife was already worried because I had been gone for a while. She accepted my peace offering, and that was the end of the issue. I was able to appease her in this manner because we had taken some time to study each other, and we know what works for us.

Once some people go through courtship and then get married, they wrongly think they have learnt all they need to know about their partner. They do not realise that they have only just begun. If you are married, you will avoid many misunderstandings if you humble yourself to study your spouse with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In 1979, I would wake up in the middle of the night and cry out to God, “Oh God, I have agreed to serve You as a minister, but I don’t want to be an ordinary minister of the gospel. I need power to do Your work; please give me power.” I would cry out to God in prayer from 10pm to 5am, but nothing happened for months. Then, one night, God spoke and said, “Will you keep quiet and listen? What have you done with the power you already have?” I thought to myself, “If I already had power, why would I be asking for it?” The Lord continued, “Son, what is written in Acts 1:8?” I knew it by heart, so I quoted it. He then asked if l had been baptised in the Holy Spirit, and I said, “Years ago.” He asked me, “Is my word true?” I replied, “Yes, it is.” He asked further, “If you have been baptised in the Holy Spirit, why then are you still asking for power? I said, “But Lord, I don’t feel powerful”. Then He said, “Did I say the just shall live by their feelings?” He told me that the just lives by faith, not feelings, as the Bible says in Romans 1:17. After this conversation, I told myself that I would lay hands on the next sick fellow I came across, and I went to sleep.

I woke up late the following morning to meet a church member with her child in my living room. This woman had a child who had been ill and the child had not slept for days. At the hospital, she was asked to take the child home because there was nothing more the doctors could do. Although I was scared, I laid my hands on the child and felt the child go limp. I thought the child was dead, but when I opened my eyes, the child was fast asleep; God had healed her. Since then, I have not stopped laying hands on people, and l have seen special miracles happen.

Beloved, if you are baptised in the Holy Ghost, you already have the power of God in you. You do not have to feel powerful; just believe in God’s word, and He will perform special miracles through you.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Many years ago, God spoke to me while I was preaching, and I shared it with the congregation. He said, “There is someone here; three breakthroughs are coming for you. When the first comes, 100% of the proceeds should be given to Me. When the second comes, you are to split it 50-50 between Me and you. The third one will be all yours.” Some days later, a widow brought some money to me and said that it was the proceed of the first breakthrough God had mentioned. Because I knew she was struggling financially, I refused to collect the money, insisting that God may not have been referring to her. She insisted that I collect it, and I eventually did. I kept the money somewhere, ready to return it to her whenever she realised that she was not the one the prophecy was about. After some time, she returned and said, “Daddy, this is 50% of the second breakthrough.” I collected it, prayed for her, and kept that also. A while later, she came back to me and said, “Daddy, the bank that said my husband owed them some money before he died called me recently to apologise. You know how I have been struggling to pay back the debt; however, they said that they just discovered that my husband was not owing them. They mentioned that they were the ones owing him a lot of money, and now, they have paid me everything.” She heard God’s message and knew without a doubt that He was talking about her. She obeyed His instruction, even though it was not convenient, and she experienced greater breakthroughs.

Some people want to be comfortable financially and have more time before they can serve God. They want to have a better job before they pay their tithes. The widow in Luke 21 : 1 - 4 proved her commitment to God by giving her all when it wasn’t convenient. People who always want to wait until they are comfortable before they serve God often don’t get to serve Him at all. Paul told Timothy to preach the gospel in season and out of season (2 Timothy 4:2). ‘Out of season’ refers to inconvenient moments, and those moments test our commitment to God.

Beloved, you don’t prove your commitment to God when it is convenient for you to obey Him. Honour and obey God in season and out of season, and you will experience His overflowing blessings.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

As the fining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold; so is a man to his praise. Proverbs 27:21

People should not chase after fame because of its potency to destroy. In 1 Samuel 9:1, Saul’s father, Kish, was described as a mighty man of power who was also wealthy. Yet, Saul was obviously very humble because when his father sent him to search for their lost donkeys, he went without complaining. Even during the search, he listened to his servant’s advice to seek a prophet’s counsel concerning the lost animals (1 Samuel 9:6-. When he became the king of Israel, he was humble in the first two years of his reign until he began to seek the approval of men. Saul forgot that it was God who appointed him king, and he began to chase after endorsements from men. The first time he did this was when the Philistines gathered against him, and Samuel delayed before joining him at Gilgal. When he saw the people scattering from him, he did what he wasn’t supposed to do by offering the burnt offering (1 Samuel 13:7-10). He did the wrong thing because he wanted to gain the people’s attention and approval. It was a costly mistake because it earned him God’s disapproval. When we allow the desire to gain people’s approval to move us into doing the wrong things, we have set ourselves against God.

In 1 Samuel 15, despite his earlier mistake, God gave Saul a chance to repent. He instructed him to destroy the Amalekites. God’s command was clear: utterly destroy them and spare no one (1 Samuel 15:3). However, Saul, in his blind lust to be ‘a man of the people,’ went against God’s instructions (1 Samuel 15:24). When we seek fame above serving God, we have fallen into the trap of the fear of man because the Bible says that the fear of man brings a snare (Proverbs 29:25).

People who desperately seek fame will compromise God’s standards to please people. At the end of the day, such people, like Saul, will lose out because God will not trust a man who desperately desires fame with the precious matters of His Kingdom.

Beloved, do not chase after the approval of men. Rather, let God’s approval be your primary motivation. When you fear the Lord and serve Him wholeheartedly, He will position you to influence others for Him.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Praise is a weapon that turns situations men have already tagged ‘hopeless’ into joyful ones. In 2 Chronicles 20:1-28, three mighty nations came against Jehoshaphat and the children of Judah. It was a seemingly hopeless situation, but God instructed Jehoshaphat to leave every weapon behind and put the singers at the battlefront to give praises to Him. Interestingly, the enemies destroyed each other, and all the children of Judah needed to do was take away the treasures the three great armies brought along with them to the battle.

When Paul and Silas were thrown into prison unjustly, they engaged the weapon of praise. As they praised God, their chains fell off, and the prison doors opened (Acts 16:25-26). I pray in the name above every name, as you engage the weapon of praise, every situation tagged hopeless in your life will be turned around for your good. The Lord will turn your mourning into dancing and fill you with joy, in Jesus’ name.

In Joshua 6:2-5, the city of Jericho was shut in as a means of protection from the Israelites, and the only available option was to mount a siege that could last for months. God, however, gave Joshua a strategy that made the wall of Jericho fall down without any physical weapon within seven days. When the people shouted loudly after the priests blew the trumpet, the wall fell down flat (Joshua 6:20). If you are faced with a challenge of any kind and you are yet to get results even after fasting and praying, then you should praise God. When everything else fails, praise will not. Praise attracts God’s presence; He inhabits the praises of His people (Psalm 22:3). When we praise God, we transfer our battles to Him, and He arises on our behalf.

Praise creates a joyful atmosphere around us, and it is with joy that we draw solutions and answers out of the wells of salvation (Isaiah 12:3). As long as the enemy can keep a fellow sorrowful, he can steal his or her miracles. As long as Hannah was in bitterness of soul, her womb remained closed. However, the moment she arose, wiped her tears, and became joyful, the Lord remembered her (1 Samuel 1:10-19).

Beloved, are you expecting anything from the Lord? Do you desire a change in your circumstances? Stop whining, complaining, and wearing a sorrowful countenance. Engage the weapon of praise, and my God will remember you and bless you, in Jesus’ name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

A young fellow once gained admission into a university abroad and celebrated with his friends and family. However, during the celebration, one of his father’s enemies said to himself, “This boy is going abroad; if he succeeds over there, he will return and buy his father a car. I will give him something to carry along that will ensure that he fails,” so he diabolically inflicted the boy with a strange ailment. The boy got to his school and began to feel a terrible pain in his body. Doctors examined him thoroughly and could not diagnose what was wrong with him. After six years of living in pain, he returned to Nigeria and attended one of our programmes that was held at Ibadan Grammar School. While I was ministering, the power of God hit him, and the pain disappeared. He started shouting, “It is gone!” God gave him a new song after six years of torment, and He can do the same for everyone who cries out to Him in faith (Romans 10:11-13).

In 1994, the RCCG held a programme in Lagos tagged ‘The Battle of the gods’. A man who attended the programme was suffering from four killer diseases: hypertension, diabetes, meningitis, and a heart problem. His doctors had advised him to travel abroad, and while planning to do so, he decided to come for the programme. The power of the Almighty God touched him; he was healed of all four diseases and was given a new song.

When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion… Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing…
Psalm 126:1-2

One of the proofs that God has turned around people’s captivity is that their tongues will be filled with songs of joy. New songs always accompany deliverance, salvation, and miracles. In Exodus 15:1-21, after the Israelites crossed the Red Sea and watched their enemies drown, they sang a new song to God. Moses and Miriam composed new songs, and everyone sang along to praise God for His wonderful miracles. Deborah also sang a new song after God gave them victory over Sisera and Jabin, the king of the Canaanites (Judges 5:1-31). Hannah was another person who received a new song from the Lord after she birthed Samuel (1 Samuel 2:1-10). I pray that the Lord will fill your mouth with songs of joy and laughter and give every member of your family new songs before the end of this year, in Jesus’ name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Many people are called by names they were not given at birth. They may not be called these names to their faces, but in their absence, people refer to them with those names. Sometimes, these names are not based on their good qualities but on qualities they are not proud of. For example, in Mark 10:46-52, the Bible tells us about a blind man called Bartimaeus whom Jesus restored his sight. To date, however, people still refer to him as ‘Blind Bartimaeus’. I don’t know if people are currently calling you negative names, but I know that my God can change your story for good such that you won’t have those negative qualities the world describes you by anymore, and they will have no other choice than to call you a new name.

Whenever God sees that a name is hindering His work in a fellow’s life, He can change the name as He did with Abraham. Abraham was first called Abram, and although this name had a good meaning – exalted father – it didn’t fully capture what God had in store for him. Therefore, God had a conversation with him one day and said, “I want to make you a father of many nations, but your name is hindering Me from doing so. Henceforth, you will no longer be called Abram but Abraham because I have made you a father of many nations.” God also changed the name of his wife from Sarai to Sarah, which was more suitable for the matriarch she was to become (Genesis 17:3-16).

When I was a lecturer at the University of Lagos, a typist, whom everyone jokingly called ‘Prof’, made a life changing decision. He said to himself, “I am a typist, but everyone calls me ‘prof’. I will indeed become a professor.” He started taking evening classes, and after a while, he wrote his exams and gained admission into the University of Lagos. Before I left the University of Lagos, the typist was already studying for his Ph.D. He made up his mind to truly change his name and not to remain a joke.

Beloved, you can also make up your mind to have a brand new beginning by surrendering all to God and asking Him to change any negative name that is hindering His glory from being manifested in your life. I pray that God will turn around any negative situation that men define you by and fill your life with joy and laughter, in Jesus’ name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

When Elijah went to Elisha’s farm and threw his mantle on him, Elisha didn’t waste time before he surrendered all to answer God’s call. Elisha seemed to be a rich fellow because Elijah met him plowing with twelve yokes of oxen when he passed by him. However, Elisha didn’t count this as anything because he returned home, killed a yoke of oxen, gave it to his people, and followed Elijah to become his servant. Within a day, the manager of an apparently thriving agricultural business became a prophet’s servant.

Elisha ministered to Elijah and was known as the one who poured water on the hands of Elijah (2 Kings 3:11). The blessings Elisha got for surrendering all in service to God are unquantifiable. He received a double portion of Elijah’s anointing (2 Kings 2:9-15), became a father to kings (2 Kings 6:21), and even after his death, his dry bones raised a dead man back to life (2 Kings 13:21). When a man surrenders all to the One who made him, he will live an impactful life.

From Elisha’s story, we see that lasting greatness begins with absolute surrender. Any seed that will count for anything, must first enter into the soil and die. It must surrender its beauty and strength so as to rot in the earth before new life can sprout from it. Jesus said:

Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.
John 12:24-25

Beloved, surrender all to the One who made you, and He will guide you aright. When you surrender your life to God, you are asking Him to help you because you don’t know the best way to live your life. In John 15:5, Jesus said, “Without me, you can do nothing.” Paul also knew the secret to absolute surrender, and that is why he said, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

Those who surrender all to Jesus will gain more in the end. However, those who keep a part of their lives, like Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:1-2 end up losing even more than the things they are trying to keep.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In Mark 10:46-52, Bartimaeus cried continually until Jesus attended to him. If Bartimaeus had not been persistent, he may not have gotten his miracle. In Genesis 32:24-28, when the angel said to Jacob, “Let me go,” he replied, “I won’t let you go until you bless me.”

Beloved, hold on to God until you get your miracle. He said in Isaiah 62:6-7 that you should not let Him rest until He establishes you and makes you a praise in the earth. Many people don’t get their miracles because they give up too soon. However, people who know how to continually knock on heaven’s doors always receive answers. Jesus told the parable of the widow who didn’t stop demanding justice in Luke 18:2-5. She wouldn’t let the judge rest until he attended to her matter. Although he didn’t fear God or regard men, the widow’s persistence pushed him to help her. In Luke 11:5-10, Jesus told another parable of a fellow who went to his friend’s house at midnight to ask for bread to entertain a visitor. Jesus said that even though his friend might not want to respond to him because it was late, he would rise and give him as many loaves as he wanted because of his persistence.Heaven-inspired devotional

Every problem you might experience in your life has an expiry date if you don’t give up on God. If you continually knock, the door will eventually open. People who are fainthearted or give up easily cannot get anything significant from life. Such people let go, even when they are so close to their blessing. People who don’t let go are people of great determination. Some of them wrestle all night in prayer and continue knocking on heaven’s door until they receive answers. Be determined; don’t give up on your prayers until you receive answers like Daniel (Daniel 10:2-14), Jacob (Genesis 32:24-28), Elijah (1 Kings 18:42-45), and the widow in Jesus’ parable (Luke 18:2-5).

Beloved, you can grow your strength by consuming God’s word and waiting on Him in the place of prayer. Do not let the enemy cheat you by wearing you down at the edge of your breakthrough; hold on firmly to God’s promises. Don’t take ‘no’ for an answer, you will eventually receive your miracle if you persist in your prayers like the woman in Matthew 15:21-28.

Do you want a blessing like Jacob or justice like the widow in Luke 18:2-5? Don’t let go. Keep knocking and pushing until your answer comes.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In Genesis 18:2-8, after Abraham set a meal before his divine visitors, he stood by them and watched them eat. Even though Abraham probably sensed that there was something divine and powerful about them, he did not begin to burden them with tales of his problems, such as his childlessness. Instead, he attended to their needs and waited on them in case they needed anything else. This is the kind of fellow that God goes all the way to provide for – someone who can truly wait on Him and is willing to attend to His needs first. God is looking for genuine worshippers who can patiently stay in His presence and fellowship with Him without being in a hurry to make demands (John 4:23-24). Are you that kind of worshipper?

In life, people wait for different things at different times, such as waiting in a doctor’s office for consultations and waiting in traffic for hours. However, despite the fact that many Christians do not mind waiting for hours for these things, they are quick to hurry out of God’s presence after spending just a few minutes.

In Psalm 100:4, the Bible says that you must come into God’s presence with thanksgiving and praises. In other words, no matter how pressing your needs are, you must not come to God complaining about them; instead, you should give Him thanks and praise first. You must realise that the One in whose presence you are is the King of all kings; you are at His mercy and not the other way around. You must find out the things He wants and attend to them first. What does God want? He loves praises (Psalm 22:3) and thanksgiving (Psalm 100:4). Also, He is looking for people who will intercede for others (Ezekiel 22:30), and He wants souls (John 15:16). When You give Him these things, He will bring laughter to your face.

Waiting on the Lord is the secret to getting instant answers and miracles. When you go to a restaurant, a good waiter doesn’t give you his favourite food; rather, he waits on you to know what you want, then, he delivers it courteously as fast as he can.

Beloved, have you tried to find out what God wants? When you go to Him in prayer, are you serving Him His delicacies or just dumping your requests on Him? God seeks waiters who will do what He wants, and when He finds them, He goes all the way to satisfy them.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

PRAYERS FOR CHILDREN

1. Thank God for the lives of all the children around you. Thank Him for giving their parents the grace to take care of them.

2. Father, I commit all the children around me into Your care. Please surround them with Your angels and shield them from all dangers.

3. Father, please help all the children around me encounter You so they can have an intimate relationship with You as Samuel did.

4. Father, please bless all the children around me with the spirit of excellence as You did for Daniel, in Jesus’ name.

5. Father, please bless all the children around me with wisdom and the gift of discernment that is beyond their ages so they can make decisions that align with Your will.

6. Father, I commit the health of all the children around me into Your hands; please give them strength in their body, mind, and spirit. Please bless them with divine health, in Jesus’ name.

7. Father, please surround all the children around me with good friends who will influence them to do great things that will bring glory to Your holy name.

8. Father, please give all the children around me the courage and strength to overcome all the challenges that come their way, in Jesus’ name.

9. Father, please help all the children around me to fulfil Your purpose for their lives, in Jesus’ name.

10. Father, please let all the children around me carry Your presence and make them a blessing to everyone around them, in Jesus’ name.

11. Father, please provide godly and healthy children to all the couples around me who are trusting You for the fruit of the womb. Let none be barren around me, in Jesus’ name.

12. Your personal prayer points for the children in your family, community, local assembly, and across the world.

Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

When Pharaoh said, “I won’t let the Israelites go,” he wasn’t talking about limiting them to a geographical location; he was talking about a different kind of bondage (Exodus 5:2). People who are in the kind of bondage that Pharaoh was referring to have no control over anything, not even their children (Exodus 1:1-22).

If a country’s government says that parents cannot raise their children in the way of the Lord, they should know that there is an evil agenda behind it. That is bondage, and they must not allow themselves to remain under it. Parents shouldn’t depend on any government to teach their children. Rather, they should take charge and teach them God’s values from His word. If a government insists that parents cannot teach their children what is right, they should move out of that place and go where they will not be under bondage.

Parents should check what their children are being taught in school and ensure they are not influenced to adopt a mindset that is against God’s will. They should also check the games they play and the cartoons they watch because, through them, something evil can be positioned to influence their mindsets. If you take charge of the children and youths around you, it will be difficult for them to be influenced by an evil agenda. If you are a parent, you must intentionally create time to teach your children God’s ways so that they will know Him for themselves as they grow. Let them spend more time with fellow believers, doing things that will make them grow up into godly adults.

When I moved to Redemption City with my family, my children were schooling far away, and they had to leave the house before 6am on school days so they wouldn’t be late for school. In order to have a relationship with them, we often ate our dinner in the car together as we drove back home from their school. As they grew older, I began to take them on evangelistic outreaches. Even when they were in the university, whenever I visited them, I ensured we spent quality time together. We would take walks and discuss the Scriptures; then, I’d guide them with God’s principles.

Parents, take charge of your children; don’t let the enemy win them over. God will hold you accountable for the children He has given you as He did with Eli (1 Samuel 2:27-31). Rise up to the responsibility of nurturing and training them in His ways.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Proverbs 22:29 says, “Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men.” Diligence means doing the right things to achieve a goal in an excellent, timely, and consistent manner. In Mark 10:46-52, Bartimaeus didn’t only cry once; he kept crying until Jesus answered him. Likewise, the woman with the issue of blood kept pressing forward until she finally got to Jesus (Luke 8:43-48). If you want to succeed at anything in life, you must be diligent and keep persevering despite obstacles.

I once gave a project to someone at the beginning of a year, and l intended to give him another one as soon as he was done. He was meant to complete the first project within three months; however, by September, he was still struggling to complete it, and there was no way I would have given him another one. God had opened a door of financial blessings to him, but he refused to be diligent.

In Matthew 25:14-30, Jesus told the parable of three servants who received talents from their master. Two of the servants were diligent, and they doubled what they received. When the master returned, he commended the two diligent servants and rewarded them handsomely. He said to them, “Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”

In the same parable, you also see the direct consequences of laziness. The servant with one talent hid it and refused to trade with it. The consequence of not being diligent was not only the loss of his talent but also sorrow for the rest of his life. While the diligent servant who started with five ended up with eleven, the lazy servant ended up with sorrow. Jesus said, “For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath” (Matthew 13:12). Anyone who has the virtue of diligence will have more, but those who lack this virtue will lose even what they have.

Beloved, diligence is powerful; it will position you for greatness and more abundance. Whatever you do according to God’s will, do it diligently with all your strength. Don’t delay, and don’t quit because of limitations or obstacles. I pray that God will reward your diligence with His abundance, in Jesus' name.

Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

I don’t believe in impossibilities. This is why, when I ask someone to do something, and that fellow says it is impossible, l move on immediately and get someone else to do it.

When we were building Redemption City, some people said it was impossible to build a house within seven days, but we did it. They also said the house would collapse soon, but it has been standing for over 40 years. Then, they said, “It’s a bungalow. A storey building will take months to build.” However, we built a storey building in 18 days. They moved on to say that it would soon collapse, but it is still standing over 30 years later. In those cases, what we simply did was find a way to double time. Workers were working on the construction site day and night. That way, what should have taken two days to accomplish only took one. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we were successful – that is what I call divine engineering. No matter how impossible something looks, if you have the Holy Spirit and are determined to get that thing done, there will always be a way.

Several years ago, I was in a faraway country to minister during a Holy Ghost Service. The venue that was used for the service was a rented property, so for me to have a place to stay and pray before the service, they had to bring a motorhome. As I stepped out of the motorhome to go for my ministration, and while the protocol officers were still trying to clear the way for me, a woman who had been barren for many years ran into the motorhome and sat on the seat I had just gotten up from. The protocol officers ran after her and took her out of the motorhome immediately, but the woman was not bothered because she believed she had gotten her miracle. She had faith that God would give her a miracle child if she could just sit in the motorhome, and she became pregnant that month!

The woman with the issue of blood in Luke 8:43-48 was determined enough to disregard all the obstacles that could have prevented her from touching the hem of Jesus’ garment. Sometimes, you will face obstacles in life; however, you must know that with God, nothing is impossible. Trust Him, and don’t give up; He will make a way where there seems to be no way, and you will testify.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

The author I referred to in yesterday’s teaching also said, “Life is an opportunity; seize it.” I agree with this saying. Indeed, life is an opportunity, and you must grab it with both hands.

I learnt a poem way back in 1957 which says,
“There is a tide in the affairs of men Which,
taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;
Omitted, all the voyage of their life Is bound in shallows and in miseries.”

The above poem means that when people take an opportunity and make good use of it, they will attain higher heights; however, if they let it go, it might never be regained. Believe me, God is fair to all. He will, at one time or the other, present you with the opportunities you need to fulfil your destiny. The rest of your life will then depend on how you use the opportunities He has given you. Ecclesiastes 9:11 says that time and chance happen to ALL. Everyone will have their time and chance, but some will not seize it.

When some people are struggling, especially the elderly, it is likely that they misused their time and chance when they were younger. Many people don’t even recognise an opportunity when it comes. This is why you must always be spiritually alert. Imagine what would have become of me if l did not use the opportunity of being in The Redeemed Christian Church of God correctly, or if I had left the church at the slightest provocation. At that time, I wouldn’t have known it, but l would have walked away from my destiny.

People who are easily offended often miss their opportunities because opportunities sometimes come in unattractive packages. For Samuel, his opportunity came in the house of Eli and his wayward sons. If Samuel had gotten offended as a child and told his mother that he wanted to return home, he might have missed the opportunity to become the great prophet whose word never fell to the ground (1 Samuel 3:19). For David, his opportunity came when he obeyed his father’s instruction to take food to the battlefield for his brothers (1 Samuel 17:14-20). I pray that you will discern your opportunities and use them well, in Jesus’ name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.