₦airaland Forum

God redeems us from the unfaithful works of darkness through His mercy and grace. When people become newly saved, though they have genuinely surrendered their lives to God and are committed to going all the way in pleasing Him, they are often not immediately well grounded in the things of God. These young converts need special care and attention from mature believers. It is the responsibility of those who have grown deeper in Christ to encourage those who are making efforts to have their faith established in Him. As their predecessor in the faith, young converts are watching and following you as an example. They must be followed up with love and shown good examples of how to live out their faith in Christ. As an older believer, you must show them compassion and understanding, remembering that Christ came to save us all because of His compassion for us. Mature believers have certain roles to play by deliberately denying themselves of certain things that are lawful but not helpful to the growth of these young converts. Like Paul who became all things to all people so that he might win many to Christ, mature believers must also be willing to become all things for the sake of those they want to establish in the knowledge of the truth. 1st Corinthians 9:22 says,
“To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.”

If you are grounded in Christ, you are not to use your liberty to harm those who are growing in the faith. Some of these people have already experienced a lot of disappointments outside the Church of God. Some of them have been defrauded, while some others have been unduly taken advantage of because of their vulnerability. Some lost precious things before coming to the knowledge of Christ. The moment they give their lives to Christ, they are full of great expectations because they’ve heard that the Name of the Lord is a strong tower. They believe the brethren will care for them, unlike what they experienced in the hands of unbelievers. We must therefore do all that is within our power not to make them regret their decision to come to Christ, which will be the case if we don’t extend hands of love to them. We must not give them occasion to stumble; neither should we allow them to stray away by our actions. We must avoid all circumstances that will grieve our fellow brethren and ensure that the word of God remains our standard in our dealings with them. Let us be careful not to offend the weak ones or lay a stumbling block on their way, because we are going to be accountable to God for all those He brings across our path.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

As Christians who are Heaven-bound, the works of the flesh are things we should watch out for, so that they do not bring our soul into damnation. We must do all we can to cherish the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). If we continue to stir up the fruit of the Spirit in our lives daily, it will be difficult for the flesh to have dominion over us. On a daily basis, our thoughts, words and actions must be guided by this scripture which says:
“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”
Philippians 4:8
If you give your heart to these words, it would be difficult for the flesh to have rule over your mind, and consequently, the works of the flesh will not find expression in your life. Such sins as hatred toward others, envy for what is happening in other people’s lives, pride and arrogance will not have a hold on you because you are walking in the Spirit of God.

All those who engage in the works of the flesh have no place in the kingdom of God. If you want to please God, the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches and the lust for materialism, all of which do not allow the word of God to find its rightful place in the hearts of men, will have to go. God commands us to run the Christian race with patience (Hebrews 12:1). There are many who have turned sin into sport. They believe that they are very smart and cannot fall victim of sin. This was the same thinking that Adam and Eve had when they allowed the voice of the serpent to override God’s instructions for their lives (Genesis 3:1-6). Samson also had an idea of the destiny he was meant to fulfil on earth, but he gambled with the anointing of God on his life and died with his enemies (Judges 16:28-30). These examples are there for us to learn from and be wise. As a child of God, you have to drop those weights of sin that easily drag you down. Don’t allow the works of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the mundane things of life to deny you of God’s plan of your life. The moment you decide not to walk in the Spirit, you have resolved in your heart to be independent of God, and from that moment, the real life in you dies! This is a deadly path to take. No one who took this path has ever had a good story to tell, but that will not be your lot in Jesus’ Name. You have to be watchful, prayerful and engage in spiritual discipline from time to time, so as not to fall prey to the wiles of the devil manifested through the works of the flesh. 
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

King Solomon is considered to be the wisest king that ever lived. How did he become so wise? When God gave Him a blank cheque to ask for anything, in 1st King 3:9, he said:
“Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?”
He chose to ask for something that the average person of his time would consider inconsequential: wisdom. Solomon feared that he might misrule God’s people and thereby incur God’s wrath, and so he asked God for wisdom. Indeed, in Proverbs 9:10, he later wrote:
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.”
It is unfortunate to discover that even among some children of God today, the fear of the Lord is greatly absent. This accounts for the level of character erosion that is being witnessed in the Church, so much so that even pastors are being caught in various acts of sin, such as sexual immorality. Joseph was repeatedly tempted and pressured to commit sexual immorality, but he vehemently refused to indulge in it, despite the fact that it was offered to him on a platter of gold. The Bible in Genesis 39:8-9 gives this account of Joseph’s steadfastness:
“But he refused, and said unto his master’s wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand; there is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?”
If you ask me what kept Joseph away from this sexual immorality, I will tell you that it was wisdom, brought about by the fear of the Lord. How I wish all of God’s children would embrace the fear of God, so that they can begin to live in wisdom. It is wisdom to run away from sin, because the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). A foolish fellow would say, “Death will come one day all the same.” Such a fellow fails to consider untimely death like the one that took Absalom away (2nd Samuel 18:10-17), the agony of death that comes as a result of sin, and the eternal death in the Lake of Fire. Revelations 21:8 speaks of the Lake of Fire in these words:
“But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
For this reason, Proverbs 4:5-9 strongly recommends that we get wisdom. The question is, where can we get wisdom? It is from the word of God (2nd Timothy 3:15). Beloved, seek godly wisdom and don’t be lawless in the name of grace, because grace does not indulge in lawlessness.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Over the years, I have observed that the more powerful some people become, the more wicked they turn out to be. When they are not yet in a position of authority, they will appear humble, but once they have a little taste of power, they act as if they are God. This is what makes my Father very different: He is a merciful God. In spite of all His power and majesty, He remains merciful. Having experienced God’s mercy, David thus wrote in Psalm 40:1-2:
“I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.”
God is so full of mercy, and there is no one who cannot benefit from His mercy. When powerful people know that no one can query them, they do whatever they like. God is however different! Even though He is the Almighty God and He is all powerful, yet His mercy endures forever. Every time you call upon Him, you can be sure His grace will speak for you. Ephesians 2:4 says
“But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,”
God’s grace grants us access to the things we don’t deserve. There are many of us who are what we are only by His grace. If not for His grace, some of us would not be alive today, if not for His grace; some of us would have no roof over our heads. If not for His grace, how would some of us have anyone willing to help us? There are many opportunities we have misused in the past, and yet we have not lived to regret this because of His grace. If not for His mercy, some of us wouldn’t have recovered from the consequences of our past life.

Can you imagine a person like Saul, who persecuted the Church of God, becoming a mighty apostle of the gospel? If I were God, I would not have saved his soul, especially when I think of the extent of the damage he single-handedly caused the Body of Christ. I then suddenly realised that I also was once in sin like him. When grace and mercy are at work in a person’s life, he will begin to make his boast in the Lord. Can you imagine Paul saying he had wronged no one (2nd Corinthians 7:2)? He could say this because the grace and mercy of God had washed away all his past misdeeds. When mercy is at work, every sinner has a future, and when grace is speaking, every saint has no past. God is telling you today that He can have mercy on you. All you need to do is to make up your mind that all the days of your life, you will continue to fear Him and walk in His ways.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

As we run the race that is set before us on the straight and narrow way to Heaven, it is possible to slip and fall. You should however note that falling or making mistakes along the way does not signify that an end has come to your life, ministry or destiny. There is no depth you sink to that the mercy of God cannot draw you out of. If you genuinely ask God for forgiveness and mercy, His grace will surely lift you up. If you are still down in sin, it is time to come up into righteousness. Are you in a situation where it appears all hope of you ever rising again is lost? No matter where you are, receive God’s touch of mercy at this very moment and come up again in Jesus’ Name!

There are ways to handle mistakes. One way is to learn from the mistakes of others so that you do not become the guinea pig. A Nigerian proverb says, “The one who falls into a pit is a lesson to others following from behind. ”You can scream after seeing that fellow fall into the pit, but make sure you don’t end up in it yourself. 1 Corinthians 10:1-12 tells us that the children of Israel who disobeyed God and were overthrown in the wilderness are lessons to us who are now on our way to the Promise Land of Heaven, it says we should not lust after evil things, because the Israelites did so and became causalities in the wilderness. It also says the reason why we should not serve other gods and commit fornication is that 23,000 of those Israelites who did the same perished in one day. It further says we should not tempt Christ like the Israelites did and died of snake bites. It even warns us of the dangers of murmuring, which some of us do very often. The Israelites murmured and were destroyed. When you see the pit your predecessors have fallen into, a wise follower will tread a lot more carefully to avoid ending up where they ended.

If you learn from the mistakes of others, you will not fall where they fall, and you will not perish where they perished; but if you fail to learn, you too will soon become a signpost that tells other not to follow the path you followed. How ironic it is for someone who was aware of the pitfalls that consumed others to end up in the same pit. This is what happens to those who never take warnings seriously. Are you like that? Do you say “it doesn’t matter “Yes, it does!  
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

More often than not, when a man receives provision before he or she has need for it, wastage occurs. Such a fellow will entertain expenditures that are focused more on unnecessary wants rather than on needs. This is why such an individual needs wisdom, guidance and lots of self-denial or self-control. May you not waste your provisions in Jesus’ Name! However, provision could also come at the time of need. This type of arrangement is preferred by some people because it eradicates the likelihood of waste. According to Psalm 46:5, when God is your refuge, He will always show up at the right time. He is never late! I pray that whatever assistance you need will locate you as soon as the need arises in Jesus’ Name.

In quite a number of situations, provision comes much after the day of need. This is totally unacceptable because the purpose for which the provision is needed is already defeated. Provision long after need is almost as bad as total denial. When help, assistance or provision is not available in the time of need, it will result in disappointment, feelings of rejection, shame and disgrace, painful loss or even death. Do you know that many people who died in some ghastly accidents could have survived if only they received help at the time of the incident? There are some who survived for a few hours but later gave up the ghost because they did not receive medical attention at the hour of need.

John 10:10 talks of Satan’s evil mission to steal, kill and destroy. One way he does this is by delaying provision or help from reaching people in need. In Daniel 10:7-13, following this petition to Heaven during a fast, an answer was sent to Daniel, but it was delayed by the Prince of Persia for 21 days. Daniel should have received the answer on the first day, but it was delayed for that whole period. Every forces of delay, sent to set back your provision or help beyond the time of need, shall be frustrated, disgraced and paralysed in Jesus’ Name! Whatever was programmed to reach you late shall arrive on time; you shall not be disappointed! That yoke of delay over your expectations is destroyed now! The Lord will sort you out speedily in Jesus’ Name! 
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

“How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them, and the LORD had shut them up?”
Deuteronomy 32:30
Although praying corporately is good, it should never be regarded as a substitute to a vibrant personal prayer life. Some people quote the above scripture to justify remaining at the level of corporate prayers, and as a result they consider efforts towards personal prayers to be a waste. It is not a wasted effort! God wants to relate with us individually and develop a personal relationship with us, just as much as He wants to relate with us as a group. For this reason, in Isaiah 51:2, He said this to us:
“Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him.”
Even when we are in a group meeting, God still wants to maintain a personal link with each of us. God is a personal God. When two brothers came to give an offering to God, the Lord related with them individually (Genesis 4:3-10). How often do you spend time alone with God?

Moreover, there are great benefits that come from staying alone with God. If we look at the example of the widow of the prophet in 2nd Kings 4:1-7, we can see some of the benefits of individual prayers. When she was asked to shut the door on herself, several things happened to her, one of which is that she went in empty but came out full. She took several empty vessels with her into the room, and all the vessels were filled up. Even today, as you personally separate yourself to access the Throne of Grace, your empty vessels will be made full. In John 7:37-39, while attending the feast of the Jews, the Lord made a call. Although it was made publicly, it was a personal call. He said anyone who was thirsty could come to Him and be filled. If you can cultivate your personal relationship with God by creating regular time to be in His presence, you will always be filled, even when you enter His presence empty. Today, the Lord is sending you an invitation to come into His presence and He will fill you up. Your emptiness can be completely swallowed up as you spend personal time with Him. Are you ready to have your emptiness filled? How hungry are you? It is your level of hunger and thirst for Him that will determine how filled you will get, So, how hungry or thirsty are you today?
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

If your giving reflects a financial status below the level God has placed you on, this would amount to demoting yourself. A wise fellow would rather promote himself or herself by giving beyond the level of his or her current financial status, so that God will upgrade him or her to that level. Some people look at me with envy, thinking that God is partial. No, He is not! God is not a respecter of persons, but He is a respecter of principles. When Peter realised this truth in Acts 10:34-35, He said:
“Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.”
When you simply do what I do and follow the Bible principles that I fellow, you will get the results that I get. I am not boasting, but if you think it is boasting, then I am simply boasting in the Lord. My God is not a God that is ruled by emotions. He is not moved by your tears or by you rolling on the ground. If there is something He expects you to do in accordance with His word, but you leave it and begin to cry your eyes out or roll on the ground for days and weeks, at the end of the day, He will still be waiting for you to do what He expected of you before He fulfils His promise to you. So the earlier you obey God, the sooner His intervention will come. Some people think they can manipulate God with their tricks. No they can’t. God would rather wait for you to obey, even if it takes years, before releasing a desired blessing. Unfortunately, some people out of stubbornness are making God wait almost their entire life time!

“Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:”
Genesis 12:1
When God called Abraham and gave him some promises, He also gave him three conditions he had to meet to access those promises. Abraham met two of these conditions, but he considered one of them not to be as important. He took Lot, his kindred, along with him. Probably he believed that his family would consider him a wicked fellow if he left his late brother’s son behind. For as long as he did not fulfil the condition of leaving his entire kindred, God also refused to fulfil His promises. This continued until Abraham began to feel the consequences of not separating from his relatives as instructed by God. It was after he obeyed and separated from Lot that God resumed discussions with him concerning His promises. Abraham lost 13 years to disobedience! Don’t be so wise in your own sight. Obey God today!
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Our God is a great and big God. In terms of size, He is so massive. Imagine that He sits on His throne in the third heavens and His feet still touches the earth (Isaiah 66:1). Due to the fact that our God is so big, He does great and big things. In Genesis 1:20-22, when He said the waters should bring forth living creatures, the oceans were soon filled with all manner of fish and sea creatures. All He has to do is to say “Let there be”, and it will come to pass. The Lord will do great and mighty things in your life this season in Jesus’ mighty Name! Doing great and mighty things is His specialty. No wonder in Jeremiah 33:3, He said:
“Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.”
When He met a young, ordinary and unknown virgin and He picked her for His great purpose, she was overwhelmed and had this to say:
“For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.”
Luke 1:49
In the mighty Name of Jesus, the Lord shall pick and use you for His great and mighty works to demonstrate his Almightiness!

In Genesis 1:28, God said “Be fruitful and multiply.” When He says “multiply”, He really means it. During creation, when He spoke that command, it was just Adam and Eve, but today, the world has several billions of people in it. Also, when Israel came into Egypt in Exodus 1:5, they were just 70 people; but by the time they were leaving, there were  600,000 men besides women, who would not have been less than 800,000, and children, who would have been at least 1,000,000 (Exodus 12:37). They kept multiplying in accordance of God’s word, in spite of all that the government of Egypt did to drastically reduce their numbers. From today, no matter what the enemy does to stop your increase, God’s word on increase will continue to thrive in your life! In addition to being a big God, He does big things. His purpose for your life is therefore big. Are you small, little, unknown and a local champion? Because your God is big, you cannot remain small. His size will definitely affect and transform your size. In the Name of Jesus Christ, you are breaking out of every barrier and limitation! You are coming out of every box of limitation that both you and others have enclosed you in! You shall be great, and you shall achieve great things for God’s Name, far beyond your dreams!
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

To avoid financial storms, you need to carefully note all the elements of a divine instruction. God is a God of details. When He gives you a recipe to solve a particular problem, He expects you to leave no details out. In 2 Kings 4:1-7, to solve the serious debt problem of the widow of a late prophet, Elisha asked her to borrow vessels from all her neighbours, shut the door behind her and pour out her remaining pot of oil into all available vessels. If she had altered any element of this instruction, it would definitely have affected the result she got. Some people receive certain divine instructions and thereafter determine which to obey and which to discard. No! All the details must be observed! Do you know that if the widow had borrowed the vessels but refused to shut her door, the oil would not have flowed?

Beloved, always pay close attention to whatever instructions you receive from God. When it comes to sowing for instance, 2nd Corinthians 9:6-7 says,
“But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.”
From the details of this scripture, it is not just sowing that will get you your expected returns, but rather, sowing bountifully and cheerfully. Today, many people have chosen to forget these details on sowing, and this accounts for the financial storms in their lives. On tithing, it is not enough to tithe, but to bring in all the tithes. After completing my PhD research, I recalled I still had part of my research grant with the university. So I went to my Head of Department (HoD) asking to draw out of it to bind my thesis. He refused to release it to me, and when I insisted, he sent me out of his office. With no other funds available, I wondered how to get the money I needed. A little past midnight, someone came knocking on my door. He said he could not sleep, and so he came to return the money I had loaned him five years earlier. Although I had forgotten this money, God had not. He paid me the exact amount I needed. After binding the thesis, I was scared, wondering if my HoD would accept it and give me a good score. So on the following Sunday, I paid my tithe, and on Monday, when I submitted my thesis to him, he was impressed and offered to personally take it to the external examiner. He also waited on the examiner until he finished his job in three days instead of six months. After this, my PhD grant was paid, and it became useful pocket money for me. You cannot tell the extent God will go to satisfy those who are totally obedient.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

First thing first, so the saying goes. As a believer in Christ, when you come before God’s presence, the most important person is not you but Him. Also, unlike most of us believe, at God’s Throne of Grace, the most important thing is not your requests, but rather the worship you offer to Him. If you fail to get this right, and you fail to adjust your approach and attitude to reflect this truth, you will always have issues with God. Do you know that every time you approach God’s presence, it is like facing a test? Believe it or not, when you come before God, there are two crucial people at that meeting: God and you. One of these two must take pre-eminence. Similarly, God has a need and you also have a need; one of these two needs must be more important.

“But seek ye first kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
Matthew 6:33
The scripture tells us about a divine order that must be followed. It also talks about God’s need and man’s need. It tells us that God has already provided for all of man’s needs. In other words, God already has all you would ever need at anytime in your life. For you to receive them, all that He requires from you is to simply meet His needs. Give Him what He wants. Put Him first and your needs last. Give Him quality thanks, praise and worship. When you follow Heaven’s protocol, you will easily receive a favourable answer to your requests. God expects you to come before His presence with thanksgiving, praise and worship, leaving your request as the last thing. Do you know that one way to know how important something really is to you is to measure the amount of time you give to it? When you pray for one hour and you use 50 minutes of the time presenting your requests, you are telling God that you and your request are more important than Him and His desires. How do you think this makes God feel? In any case, He has already expressed His thoughts about this in 1st Samuel 2:30d, where He said:
“For them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.”

Also, what you focus on becomes magnified. If you focus on your problems, they will be enlarged, but if you focus on God and on what He wants, He will be magnified to the extent that your problems will fade into insignificance. By the time you eventually remember them, you would discover that they have been swallowed up by His Almightiness, leaving you with the answer to your prayers.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Colossians 1:16 tells us that all visible and invisible things were created by God and for God. You were created to make God happy by following His will, plan and purpose for your life. However, when you take the path of self-government and go contrary to the purpose for which you were created, that is rebellion. Lucifer and several angels decided to walk out of God’s original plan, and they became who we now refer to as Satan and demons (Isaiah 14:12-16, Revelation 12:7-9). Anyone who follows self-government today will also end up where the devil and his demons are. The truth is, if you fail God, you fail yourself. Therefore, pleasing God is the real path to true self-fulfilment, lasting peace and joy. I tell you the truth, living on earth without conforming to God’s original blueprint for your life makes you waste that life. Without God, life is not worth living.

“No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.”
2nd Timothy 2:4
We are not here on earth by our power or design. We were created and placed here to satisfy God’s eternal plan and purpose for our lives. Even when Jesus was here, in all that He did, He did not try to please Himself but His father (John 8:29, John 5:30). Now that He has chosen us to be His soldiers, we cannot afford to please ourselves. When He gives us an assignment, we must do it exactly as He wants it done, or risk going against Him. In 1st Samuel 15, King Saul was given an assignment by God to go and utterly wipe out the Amalekites. He went out to fulfill it but made slight changes to the instructions. In the end, he failed God and failed himself. He lost his kingdom because he could not totally comply with God’s will. Today, for this same reason, many people are close to completely losing their place in God’s divine plan. A king who resisted God had to go on a seven-year trip into insanity, and he lost his throne for that period (Daniel 4). Similarly, another king who said that God’s word should not be heard was eaten alive by worms (Acts 12:1-24). If these great kings could not resist or withstand God, do you think you can? If you are wise, you will totally submit to His will today. God has a problem with the so-called obedience of a good number of His children. Although He is speaking to them, they are not listening to Him; rather they are more interested in hearing themselves. Hence, He has almost grounded them in all areas. Thinking it’s the devil at fault, such people are wrongly praying against agents of darkness. It is time to do nothing short of God’s total will in all your ways!
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

A blessing is an invitation to all the forces in Heaven, on earth and underneath the earth to cooperate with an individual and assist him or her to succeed. When Isaac pronounced a blessing on Jacob in Genesis 27:20-29, he summoned the dew of heaven, the land, and all the forces on earth to be of assistance to Jacob. As a result of this blessing, Jacob became exceedingly great. Hear what Genesis 30:43, says about his greatness:
“And the man increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses.”
How about his brother Esau? Genesis 27:38-40 says after Jacob had stolen the cream of the blessing from him, Esau came to ask for the remnant. What was the result of this “remnant”? From Genesis 32:3-6, we understand that this remnant got him so blessed that he could afford to retain the services of 400 personal bodyguards. If you become so rich that you require 400 men to go with you wherever you go, that is something remarkable. I can recall the first time a president visited us at the Redemption Camp; he came with an entourage of 250 people. So Imagine how blessed Esau was for him to have had 400 people in his entourage! I believe he was really blessed.
Moreover, let me add here that after a blessing is pronounced on you, it may not be obvious how the blessing will be fulfilled. Most times, it may not even make sense. You may not even be able to afford a bicycle now, and a blessing may be pronounced on you that a time will come when you will need a Boeing 747 to airlift those who will accompany you whenever you are travelling. It may not make sense to you, but that is what a blessing can do. I often say that I am where I am today by the grace of God and by the blessings of my mother. Any time I did something that pleased her, she would bless me. She would say, “You this boy, you will call one person, and two hundred people will respond.” I didn’t know what she meant back then, and I didn’t know how it would happen, but I always said “Amen”. Today, by the grace of God, I can say this has become reality. Have you provoked the blessing of your biological parents? Have you provoked the blessing of your spiritual parents? Most importantly, have you provoked a blessing from God?
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In the Lord’s prayer, Jesus taught us to pray by approaching God as our Father. He said:
“After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.”
Matthew 6:9
Why did He not say “Our God”, Our Maker” or Our Deliverer”? It is because God wants us to have a definite, personal relationship with Him. Of all the relationships we could possibly have with God, the father-son relationship is one of the greatest. In Mark 14:36, when the Lord Jesus Christ was facing His greatest challenge – dying on the cross of Calvary – He addressed God as “Abba, Father”, which in other words is “My Daddy”. This level of closeness with God is not exclusive to Jesus Christ alone. Romans 8:15 says,
“For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again for fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.”
If you compare this scripture with Galatians 4:6, you will realise that both the Holy Spirit and our Lord Jesus Christ have made it possible for us to share the same kind of closeness with the Father that Jesus had. Therefore, we too can unashamedly call God, “My Daddy”. If only you know how much God longs to have such intimacy with you!

Intimacy with God is something you cannot do without if you are to fulfil God’s plan for your life. There is a time of need that everyone will face, which will require each of us to draw on our relationship with God. Those who have God as their creator will approach Him as “My Creator”, while those who serve Him will approach Him as “My God”. In such times, those who are intimate with Him will call Him “My Daddy”. You can be sure that one carries more weight than the others. How would you want to approach God? Would you want to approach Him as a distant Creator, as God of the universe or as your personal Father? The choice is yours. When you develop a good relationship with God, He will indeed be a Father to you by acting as the fountain from which you came forth (Genesis 2:7). David understood this and he experienced a very intimate level of closeness with God. This is the reason why in Psalm 23, he could testify of enjoying that which a father provides: food, sleep, water, protection, guidance, security, goodness and mercy. These all will be yours today in Jesus’ Name! Do everything possible to build your intimacy with God!
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Generous divine provision is a benefit of those in the sheepfold of the Great Shepherd. God prepares a table of abundance for His sheep (Psalm 23:5). No wonder David, in Psalm 13:6, said:
“I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.”
This scripture is a personal testimony of David. After God had blessed him beyond measure, he began to testify of God’s goodness through songs. If you carefully study the life of David, you will discover that the secret of his prosperity lay in the principles he lived by. One of such principles is demonstrated in 1 Chronicles 16:2-3: he believed giving to be the key to receiving. Can you imagine a man giving a loaf of bread to every citizens of a country? This was what David did, and he even gave much more! We often wonder why most of us are not flowing in God’s abundance, even though God has resources to cater for more than we could ever need. One likely reason for this is that we do not strictly follow divine financial principles. Jesus, in Luke 6:38, said:
“Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give unto your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”
Let us draw a few lessons from this. Firstly, if you ever want to receive, it is your duty to first give. If you fail to sow, you would be deceiving yourself to expect a harvest. Many of us refuse to give, and yet we continue to pray, fast and do all other things right. If you want to receive, first give. It is important to note that God will never owe anyone. If you give, you will receive a harvest, no matter how long it takes, as long as the seed is not uprooted.

However, the way the harvest comes and when it will come are issues that may not be too clear to you. For instance, you may be expecting your harvest for a particular seed in the form of physical cash, not knowing that God has already given it to you as a harvest of peace in the time of trouble, or as protection when the enemy came calling. Sometimes, you cannot tell how the harvest of a given seed will come, although if you key into the Holy Spirit, He can sometimes reveal to you that a particular harvest you received was from a particular seed you sowed. Moreover, God who knows our needs should be given the freedom to determine when and how our harvests should come. Just make sure that a lifestyle of giving and sowing seeds is an indelible part of you. Do you give to God? Do you give to His servants? Do you give to the needy? How often do you give?
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

It’s a fact of life that we are all susceptible to making mistakes. However, when we make mistakes, we must have the strength of character to admit our mistakes and also to resolve never to repeat them again (Proverbs 28:13). A child learning to walk will stand up, take a step or two and fall down again. You will observe however that in spite of these falls, he or she does not give up trying. The child will repeatedly make attempts at walking, and in the process of time, the child will not only walk, he or she will also run, leap and jump, all without falling to the ground like before. Do not turn a mistake into your final destination. Can you believe that because some people made a mistake in their walk of faith in Christ, they gave up the race entirely and decided to die there? That is most unfortunate! Some people cannot forgive themselves for either denying Jesus at a very crucial moment when their faith was tested, or for falling  into a particular sin that they have been preaching against all along. Such people need to learn from the example of Apostle Peter, who thrice denied Christ. The Lord had to make him realise that it was not over yet. That same Peter was the one who later led the other disciples in defending their faith in Christ and in propagating the Good News of the gospel around the world.

“Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me.”
Micah 7:8
One lesson from this scripture is that the fact that you slipped and fell does not mean that the enemy has won the battle over your life. He hasn’t. It also says that there is the possibility of a comeback. From where you fell, you shall arise in Jesus’ Name! Your rise shall be more formidable! You may say that your case is a bad one because you have fallen so many times and you therefore concluded that it was better to stop trying. Oh, how wrong you are! Proverbs 24:16 says it is possible for a righteous man to fall seven times and still rise. To fall seven times simply refers to the possibility of falling to a point of experiencing what most people will call the final or ultimate fall. Yet, even at that, if you are a child of God, the Lord says that you should not give up hope. Make another attempt at reconciling with the Lord, confess your weakness to Him, and ask for His help. He will lift you up and He will sustain you afterwards. So are you still on the floor? Arise now!
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

A sign that confirms whether or not you have experienced genuine salvation is your willingness to make restitution with your fellow men. When you are genuinely saved, the Spirit of Jesus Christ in you will motivate you to right your wrongs and undo your evil deeds. An elderly judge once attended one of our meetings at the Sheraton Hotels, Ikeja (Lagos), and he gave his life to Christ. On his way home after the programme, he just could not contain himself. There was a person he quarrelled with several years before, and he had a burning urge to resolve the dispute; so right from the venue of our programme, he went straight to the house of the person in order to settle the matter. Did you say you are saved, but you still hold grudges, have bitterness and manifest an unforgiving spirit? Please examine yourself to be sure you are truly in Christ.

Similarly, there was a particular king in Ogun State, Nigeria. For several months, I went to preach to him and he would tell me “Before your mother married your father, I have been going to church.” He would show me a Bible that Queen Victoria gave to his grandfather. Repeatedly, I said to him, “Your royal highness, that is not what I am talking about. I am asking you to repent of your sins and surrender your life to Jesus Christ.” Then one day, he yielded and gave his life to Jesus. By that time, he had not seen his wife for years, due to a disagreement they had. Within days of giving his life to Christ, he promptly contacted her, and they resolved their differences. You cannot be genuinely saved and refuse to restitute.

In what areas would you need to make restitution today? If you stole anything from anybody, return it or pay for its replacement if it’s lost. If you bore false witness against somebody, go and uncover the truth. Have you fraudulently acquired your academic certificate? Go and restitute. If you have stolen another person’s passport and impersonated the fellow, using the passport to move around, go and restitute. Are you a second or third wife to a man, or have you as a man married two or more wives? You are living in adultery. Make restitution! Have you received payment for a contract which you did not execute? Go and return the money! Have you been falsifying records and stealing money through that? Go and restitute. If you have tough cases, seek counselling from a pastor in a true Bible-believing church. Also, ask God to help you. If you really want to obey God, He will definitely make a way for you.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

How you approach a house will determine whether you will be welcomed or chased out. If you approach the door and knock, you will be attended to as a lady or a gentleman, but if you decided to break through the window, you will surely be taken for a burglar, thief or robber and met with several resistance. Your approach matters! In the same vein, to enter into God’s presence, you must follow heaven’s protocol. The Holy Spirit in Psalm 100:4 revealed this protocol when He said:
“Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.”
If you want to be welcomed into God’s presence and have your requests granted, don’t just crash in, follow heaven’s protocol! Let your heart and mouth be full of thanks for all God has done for you, your family and your loved ones. When you approach God, let Him first hear your thanksgiving. Let this be followed by quality praise and worship. Let your request come last, and let the time you use in making your request be shorter than the time you spent giving Him thanks, praise and worship. Whenever you violate this order, you do damage your requests and hurt your relationship with the lover of your soul – the Almighty God Himself.

Moreover, you may want to ask: Why must I approach God with reverence, thanksgiving and praise? It is because worshippers always get what they want. In Matthew 8:1-3, a leper approached Jesus, fell at His feet and worshipped Him, even before he made his request. In the end, he was cleansed. What of the mad man of Gadara whose story is recorded in Mark 5:1-15? As mad as he was, after approaching Jesus, he knew enough to fall down at His feet to worship Him. For this reason, even without verbalising his desire to be delivered from the demonic siege he was under, Jesus set him free. Effective worship works wonders! Jairus was a top leader in Israel, and yet, when his daughter was seriously sick and he approached Jesus, he forgot about his position, power and wealth, fell at the Master’s feet and worshipped Him. Also, when the woman whose daughter was tormented by demons came to the Lord expressing her need, the Lord ignored her; but when she began to worship Him, the tide turned (Matthew 15:21-28). From today, follow heaven’s protocol in approaching God and you will get your heart’s desires.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In life, some people experience provision before they ever need it, while some get provision just in the nick of time. Some others only get the provision they need after the time of need is past. One Bible character who experienced provision before need is the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-16. All he would ever need was already provided for and safely kept by his father. Nevertheless, what was his responses to his father’s wisdom and grace? He foolishly asked for all that was his, and he wastefully spent it all. Luke 15:13 says,
“And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.”
May you never waste God’s provision for your life! There are so many people who engage in wasteful spending. There are some people God has blessed with the funds to buy a piece of land, which they can develop as God enables them, but they use the provision to acquire a flashy car or attempt to live ‘big’ while they are still in a rented apartment. This amounts to foolishness. There are some youths who get some big money from legitimate ventures, but because they had no financial intelligence and never sought counsel, they wasted it and struggled thereafter.

“If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct.”
Ecclesiastes 10:10
To manage financial provision, you need wisdom. In fact, the scripture above says that you can get results from a cutlass whether it is sharp or blunt; the difference is that wisdom helps you make the best decisions to obtain the best results. If you have financial wisdom, you would avoid wasteful spending and increase whatever you have. Do you have financial resources beyond what you need for the moment? Ask God for wisdom to manage it. Also, ask for guidance. Follow the counsel in Proverbs 24:6: ask those who know better. Ask from experienced fund managers and people skilled in financial investments. More importantly, find out from God, the provider of that provision, what the purpose of the provision is. If you can diligently ask Him, He will guide you on how to spend it in such a way as to guarantee repeated provision. You do not need to spend on every item you see or like. Humbly surrender your desires to God and let Him reign over them.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

When you go through the scriptures and see the effect of a divine curse on those who were cursed, you would do just about anything to avoid a curse from God. Although a curse from one man to another can have terrible effects, if spiritual help is sought from someone operating at a higher level than the source of the curse, such curses can be terminated. It’s a dilemma however, if the source of a curse is God. There would be no one to run to in such cases. When God cursed the ground after the fall of Adam, from that moment till now, the earth has not been yielding produce to its full potential. Wait until you see what this same ground can produce after the curse is lifted during the millennial reign of Christ! Similarly, when God cursed Cain, it had a terrible effect on him (Genesis 4:9-15). Cain was supposed to be the first born of the whole earth, but when he was cursed, he became a vagabond. Virtually everyone he met desired to kill him, even without him offending them. No wonder he cried to God for clemency. Genesis 4:13-14 says,
“And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that everyone that findeth me shall slay me.”

Moreover, in Mark 11:12-14, Jesus cursed a fig tree which appeared to have fruit but had only leaves. By the following morning, the tree had completely withered from its very roots. When God places a curse, it begins to operate from the root upwards. I once visited the capital of a state in Nigeria some years ago. This state had a lot of mighty rivers, yet the state capital had no pipe-borne water. Surprised, I made some inquiries on why this was so, and I was told, “Sir, there is a tree in the centre of the capital that should not be uprooted. They even had to build a road around it. As long as the tree remains, nothing good happens to this town. “I said “Is that so?” Then I quietly added, “No problem, we are here “I then cursed the tree in the Name of the Lord. that very night, there was a storm in the town and by the following morning, the tree was uprooted completely. Any evil tree tying down your progress is cursed today in the Name of Jesus! I command it to dry up and be uprooted in Jesus’ Name! Are you under a divine curse? Immediately run to the cross of Calvary in repentance and make your ways right with God, and thereafter seek His face for mercy. May you find favour in His sight today!
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

It is very important for you to give God thanks always. One reason why this is necessary is because there are several battles God fights for you that you know nothing about. Some people are so conservative when it comes to giving God thanks. They think they are clever, and so they only give God thanks when they believe He has earned it. In other words, they only thank God when He has done something very “tangible” for them. If however it appears that He has not done anything for them, they hold back on offering thanks to Him. Such people may think they are smart, but they are not. When you are asleep, do you know the various battles waged against you by the enemies of your soul? How can you fight for yourself in a realm you are oblivious of or when you are asleep?

Many years ago, while still lecturing at the University of Ilorin (Kwara State, Nigeria), I had an experience that left its mark on my mind. In those days, I could travel from one end of the university campus to the other end within fifteen minutes. After my morning lectures, I could leave the campus, return home for lunch, and rest a while before returning for evening lectures. I was also the pastor of our church parish over there, and so people kept coming in and out of our living room. After my meal one afternoon, I lay down on the couch and closed my eyes so that I could get some rest. As I lay down, I put my two hands together on my head and closed my eyes. Suddenly, someone entered the room, held my two hands with one hand and held my two legs with the other hand and tried to kiss me. At first, I thought it was my wife, but then it dawned on me that whoever could hold me up this way must be a very tall fellow. I therefore opened my eyes and the creature disappeared. A cold shiver ran down my spine as I asked myself what this was. Eventually, I pushed the incident aside. Intending to drive back to the campus, I got into the car, but all of a sudden I had a running stomach and began to vomit. I virtually crawled from the car into the toilet. Then I began to ask, “How could this happen to me?” God’s responses was, “Son, I just wanted you to see a little of the battles I fight for you, which you know nothing about.” For you to sleep peacefully every day, God does not sleep. He continues to watch over you. Why don’t you become really generous in thanking the Almighty God, who alone deserves all your thanks?  
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

When God commanded all males in Israel to appear before Him in Deuteronomy 16:16-17, He specifically instructed that they should not come before Him empty-handed. He also instructed that whatever they brought to Him must be a reflection of the level of blessings they had received from Him. Based on these two parameters, can you say you have followed the divine pattern whenever you appear before God? Today, when God’s people assemble before Him, many of them do not care about what they bring as an offering, as long as they bring something. Do you know that God cares about this? For this reason, 2nd Corinthians 8:12 says,
“For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.”

One year, during our annual thanksgiving service for pastors and ministers of our church, I told them that God expects them to bring an offering that reflects how much He has blessed them individually. Then I asked them this question: “Brethren, do you know that many of us demote ourselves by the offering we give? “They appeared surprised to hear this. So I further explained that God knows us individually, and He knows the level to which He has blessed each one of us. He knows those who can afford to give N500 and those who are unable to give more than N100. If you are in the category of N1000 but give N500 per offering, you are indirectly saying to God, “Dear Lord, you made a mistake placing me in the category of givers of N1000. You should have left me in the category of givers of N500,” Then the Lord would reply, “I thought I promoted you, but if you want to demote yourself, no problem.” This is why some people are experiencing financial dryness. You are the one who told God that the level He placed you at is too high and that He should take you lower.  I shared with my children that at the beginning of every year, I draw up a budget stating what I want to earn as my income for the year. Then I tell God that this is where I was last year but this is where I want to be by the year’s end. Thereafter, I start giving to reflect my expectations based on my target. I promote myself by giving beyond my present level, and I can tell you in unmistaken terms that God has never failed me, not even once. Before the end of the year, I would have already surpassed the limit I set for myself. How has it been with your life of giving? Make necessary adjustments today and key into your joy.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

The Lord Jesus Christ instructed us to ask until our joy is full (John 16:24). Due to a lack of faith in God’s ability to meet our needs, many of us ask for crumbs, and by doing so, we insult or dishonour God. Are you one of such people? During one of our special programmes sometime ago, while in my prayer room, God took me up on this issue. He reminded me of an incident that happened several years before then, when I went to London to prepare our Sunday School manual. After finishing it, I still had three days to go before my flight was due, but I had completely run out of money. The kind of ticket I paid for on that trip was a cheap one and so it did not allow for rescheduling of dates. I felt I could go without food for three days but could not avoid buying certain materials, books and tapes that I needed. These would cost me £50 and I had no money. So I said, “Daddy, it would be good if I could get £50. “Shortly after, my phone rang and I picked it up. The fellow on the line said, “Biyi”. I told him there was nobody with that name there. He asked, “Is that not so and so number?” As we talked, he got to know who I was and he screamed. He called out to his brother with excitement, telling him that he was speaking with me. Obviously, they had been discussing how they could see me and now I was on the phone with them. Eventually, they came over, we talked, and as they were leaving, they gave me £50. As soon as they left, I said, “Daddy, if I knew it would be this easy, I would have asked for £100!”

As I went upstairs in the apartment I was staying at, I rejoiced over the £50 I had just received. Just then, the door bell rang, and then it rang a second time. By this time, it was night already. Before I got to the door, the fellow at the door had slipped an envelope through the door into the room and left. I picked it up, opened it and realised it had come from a man I had known for a long time. He was a very wealthy man who was also very stingy. He had never given me a dime before. In the envelope was £50 and a note saying, “I just felt like giving you some money.” As I went towards the bedroom, I told God that if I had known this second £50 would come, I would have asked for another £50! That night, before I slept, another £50 came. Then I became afraid and told God I was joking and did not want to offend Him. In my prayer room, the Lord told me I had been a foolish boy. “If you asked me for £50 and I could provide it, why didn’t you ask for £5000?” Are you trying to help God conserve His resources when you ask? He doesn’t need your help! Ask, and ask big! Don’t limit Him.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

When you are genuinely saved, you will desire to find out what you can do for the Lord Jesus Christ. There will be a strong desire in your heart to reciprocate the Saviour’s gesture of love. Is it so with you? When I newly got born again, there were quite a few people around me who got saved at about the same time also. We all had certain characteristics in common, one of which was: anytime there was work to be done for God, we volunteered. We did it joyfully, spending our money, time and energy. Unfortunately, when you ask some people who claim to be born again to do some work in the house of God today, they will charge you double the job’s worth, while some unbelievers would just give you a normal bill. Such people need to seek genuine salvation!

Moreover, another sign to genuine conversion is the desire to right your wrongs. True salvation yearns for restitution. Nobody will experience genuine salvation without asking questions such as these: How much of my past iniquity can I correct? How much can I salvage of the damage I have done? These questions will come from your heart even without being taught the doctrine of restitution. This happened to Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10.  Immediately Jesus entered his house, Zacchaeus responded to His love with these words in Luke 19:8:
“…. Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.”
Zacchaeus, even without being instructed, decided to give 50% of his wealth to the poor, and offered to return four times whatever he had taken from any man by false accusations. This pleased the Lord. Indeed, restitution pleases God. When you restore whatever you have stolen, and whenever you right your wrongs, it becomes a testimony to the genuineness of your repentance. When you make restitution to people you offended or cheated, it softens the ground for you to eventually present the message of the gospel to them. If you hold back what you stole, even after you claim to have been saved, you will retain the enmity of those you defrauded, and because of you, they may never respond to the message of salvation. Is there any pending restitution you need to make? Go ahead and right your wrongs. For controversial and very weighty cases, please seek counselling before going ahead. 
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

God is a God of order, and Heaven is a place of order. Heaven is also a place where everything revolves around the will of the Owner: God. There is protocol in Heaven and a hierarchy or authority which must be respected. For this reason, when accessing God’s presence, the manner of approach really matters. How you enter into a room or house will determine whether you will be welcomed or chased out. Do you know that even God subjects Himself to the law of order? In Revelations 3:20, Jesus said,
“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.”
Although God created us, He still has to knock and wait to be invited in before He enters into our hearts. Even though He created the space in your heart for Himself, He still doesn’t force Himself into that space. You are the one to decide if and when He should come in or not.

In Genesis 18:1-8, Abraham saw some divine visitors near his tent. He ran to meet them, pleading for the opportunity to be hospitable to them. In this instance also, you can see that God waited to be invited in. similarly, in Genesis 19:1-3, when the two angels arrived in Sodom, Lot invited them in to spend the night. Also, in 2nd Kings 4:8, Elisha was just passing by when the Shunammite woman invited him into her house for lunch, and even though he said he was not hungry, the woman practically compelled him to come in. From that day forward, whenever Elisha passed by, he stopped over at her house.

God waits to be invited in because of His humility, and due to the fact that He does not want to impose Himself on us. Also, He created us as free moral agents and not as zombies or robots: He wants us to be free to express our own will. In addition, He wants us to be able to bear the consequences of our actions and not hold Him responsible for what we do. He also wants to be able to determine if we truly love Him and whether we desire to follow Him or not. If you are not yet born again, you have been keeping the Saviour waiting all these years. Please answer the knock on the door of your heart, kindly invite Jesus in, and surrender your whole life to Him. Doing this is in your own interest.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In every village, town, city, state or nation, there are usually two kingdoms at play: the kingdom of light and the kingdom of darkness. Colossians 1:13 says,
“Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:”
This scripture shows that every child of God has been moved from one of these kingdoms to the other. If you are truly saved, you are no longer in darkness but in the kingdom of light. As light, you should not be afraid of operators in the kingdom of darkness, such as witches, wizards and those in the occult, because you have the greater one inside of you (1st John 4:4). If you are afraid of them, this indicates to you that all is not well with you; there could be some cracks in your wall, and sin might be responsible. Whatever compromises your holiness compromises your divine security. When these operators of darkness see that your light is shinning brightly, they will withdraw and dangle carrots of temptation at you, and if you fall for it, they will strike at you.

Moreover, the reason why God translated us from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of his dear Son is because He is interested in having his will established both in Heaven and here on earth. Although nothing short of God’s will is done in Heaven, on earth, there is still a struggle to establish God’s will, because man handed over control of the earth to the kingdom of darkness in the Garden of Eden (Luke 4:5-6). As a child of God, you are therefore an agent of re-establishing God’s will in any corner of the earth where you find yourself. If you want to establish and fulfil God’s will, you will make no room for lies, sin and pretence. Among God’s children on earth today, you will be shocked to know how many of them really seek to do His will in all areas of their lives. Many of us want God to change His plans and ways to suit ours, but that is an expectation of futility. God does not change: He is ever the same (Malachi 3:6). As conservative as He may appear to be, His technology in Heaven is billions of years ahead of ours on earth. In fact, He is the One who gives our researchers, thinkers and inventors the latest discoveries they get. Such scientific discoveries are new and news to us,  but not to those in Heaven. To them, the best we have on offer is stale news. In Heaven, there are no gimmicks or tricks. Everything revolves around God, and He is in control of time. When God therefore gives you an assignment, He has expectations regarding when, where and how it should be done. If you miss out on any of the details, you will be on your own. To what extent are you doing His will? 
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

From Judges 9:16-24, the effects of a curse are glaring and obvious. Jotham was a son of Gideon who escaped the murderous rampage of his brother Abimelech. After Abimelech had killed seventy of his brothers, Jotham stood and placed a curse on him and the men of Shechem who conspired with Abimelech to carry out this evil act. Three years after this curse was pronounced, God sent an evil spirit to bring about the fulfilment of the curse. In the process of this curse being fulfilled, so many terrible things happened. Land and property were destroyed, a large part of the population was annihilated and ultimately, the cursed Abimelech died. May you never come under a curse! And if you are already under any curse, it is broken today in Jesus’ Name! Let me tell you a story I heard when I was very young. An old man met a bubbling young man on his way to the farm one day. Being advanced in age, the old man was bent, used a walking stick and limped slightly. Seeing this old man, the young man began to laugh at him; so the old man asked him what he did to deserve such ridicule. “Why shouldn’t I laugh? What can you do?” the young man asked, and the old man replied, “I know I am too feeble to run after you or fight you, but the basket is never satisfied with water”, and then he went on his way. Suddenly, a strong thirst gripped the young man. He dashed to the first hut and asked for water. After drinking so much, he continued his journey. Not long after, he became thirsty again. He stopped at the second hut and drank so much water. Thereafter, he returned to the first hut to ask for some more water, and the people there discerned that something was definitely wrong with him. “What is wrong with you?”, they asked. He told them, “One old man said to me, “The basket is never satisfied with water”. “Really, can you describe this old man?” He did, and they accompanied him to search for the old man, until they found him and begged for his forgiveness. This old man gave in, and then pronounced, “Alright, from now on you cease to be the basket, and you will begin to have satisfaction.” That was how the young man was delivered from the strange thirst.

Do everything possible to avoid being cursed by God. If a curse from a fellow man can be disastrous, how would a curse from God be? If your biological father curses you, you can run to your spiritual father or pastor, who has spiritual authority over you, and he can cancel it. If your pastor curses you, you can run to the general overseer set over him, and he can cancel it; though he will also demand that you restitute your ways. However, if God curses you, to whom will you run? 
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Some people attend big Christian events for the sake of tradition, while some others attend because certain people are coming there. A crowd will often gather whenever there is an assembly where Jesus is present. If you attend such gatherings because of the crowd – just to belong or to show that you are current – you may not receive your desired blessings. In Mark 5:24-34, a crowd gathered around Jesus Christ on His way to Jairus’ house. For many of them, it was enough that they were in the crowd following Jesus, but right there in their midst, there was a woman who was not there because others were there; she was there because she so needed and desired to touch Jesus. She was determined in her heart that if only she could touch the hem of His clothes, she would receive her healing. She touched it and she was healed. That is what a motivated mindset can do. The Bible says she “came in the press behind”. She did not mind if people trampled on her, and she did not mind the pushing and shoving of the crowd; her singular focus was that she just had to touch the hem of the Master’s garment, no matter what it would take. To understand how motivated she was, you try getting to the front of a crowd from behind.

Moreover, another person who had a motivated mindset was Zerubbabel. Haggai 1:12-15 shows that when you have a focused mindset like Zerubbabel did, it will stir you up to take action. A motivated mindset fills your heart with conviction that you are overdue for a breakthrough, thereby ushering you into your desired blessing. For instance, when the man who was paralysed from the neck downwards was brought to Jesus, it was not for flimsy reasons (Mark 2:1-12). His friends felt he was overdue for a breakthrough, and so on their arrival, when the door was blocked off and there was no feasible way in through the window, they created a way through the roof. When you believe you are already overdue for a breakthrough, you will be compelled to take violent steps towards attaining your expectation. You will not care about the crowd, traditions or the need to socialize. You will not care about who is first, second or next to be attended to on a queue. All that fills your mind is that you are the next beneficiary of God’s mercy. Where do you stand now? Are you overdue for promotion, success, breakthrough, deliverance or prosperity? If you are, let your conviction on this drive you into your miracle. Such a belief has a way of motivating you to take actions that will trigger your blessing. It shall be well with you this season!
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

“Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.”
Malachi 3:8
In the above passage of Scripture, God complained about His children, who had suddenly turned into robbers. How can a worker in the Church of God or a minister of God be a thief? How can you claim to be a born-again Christian and keep on stealing? Those who rob God are no ordinary thieves. Boy, such people are really brave! Their victim is not a fellow human being but God Himself. You can be certain that such people are the worst kind of thieves in the universe! Can you imagine that idolaters fear their idols so much that they do everything possible not to break their rules? If anything is dedicated to an idol, who would dare steal it? Yet, these people throw all caution to the wind and steal what is dedicated to the Most High, and they expect Him to do nothing about it, because He is a God of mercy. This is bravery gone awry! Are you one of such “holy thieves”? Are you defaulting in your tithes and offerings?

In the same vain, there are some foolish and ignorant people, particularly in the universities, who insult God and Jesus Christ occasionally. I know this because I used to be one of them before I got saved. The opposite of honour is disrespect. If you are not honouring God, it means you are insulting Him. Everyone who robs God of first fruits dishonours God, and if you dishonour God, you can compel Him to change His promises and plan for your life (Proverb 3:9). This was what happened to the house of Eli. Hear what the Lord told Eli in 1st Samuel 2:30:
“… I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.”
May the Lord not change His great plan for your life. Do you honour Him? if you refuse to honour God, He will refuse to honour you. If you ignore Him, you will be of no consequences to Him. At the end of the day, you will undo yourself by your refusal to comply with divine instructions. Refusal to honour God can turn the desirable into something detestable. It can push the good things of life that were at a person’s fingertips miles away from him or her. Dishonouring God can separate you temporarily or even permanently from your blessings. Have you been paying your first fruits yearly? How often do you honour God?
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

If you have a heart desire which you have asked for, but you are yet to receive it after a long time, it might just be that you are either not yet desperate or you are not desperate enough. The truth is, desperate people break all barriers, respect no decorum and refuse to take ‘no’ or ‘wait’ for an answer. In the end, desperate people often even get more than they bargained for, while the non-desperate sometimes barely receive the minimum desire they crave. Hannah’s experience serves as an example of what desperation can produce in the life of a person. She was barren and she prayed for the fruit of the womb for several years but nothing happened. Instead, her mate mocked her even more; she then became desperate. In her desperation, she made a vow which provoked her miracle. Although she only asked for one child, her desperation gave her an additional five. She experienced an overflow! If you can take your desperation to the limits. You can get beyond your request today.

Moreover, desperation can cause you to ask for the impossible. When you are desperate, you are not bothered about processes or possible means. You could ask for what most people will consider difficult, and you will get it. Elisha is a case in point. Elisha was desperate for the power of God, and so when he tendered his request, his master told him he had asked for a hard thing. What did he ask for? He requested a double portion of the Spirit upon his master. Elijah said that was a difficult request, but Elisha got it because he was desperate (2nd Kings 2:9-15). How desperate are you? Do you believe God can do all things? Do you really believe that your request will not be difficult for God? Are you sick and trusting God for healing? My God has enough power to heal a whole nation in just one night. When the Israelites were leaving Egypt, none of them was feeble. Speaking about this, the Holy Spirit in Psalm 105:37 said:
“He brought them forth also with silver and gold: and there was not one feeble person among their tribes.”
Can you imagine that? These people had been beaten, tortured and bruised; yet, in one single night, all of them were healed! If He can heal a nation in one night, can’t He heal your whole family at a go? Yes He can! However, how desperate is your desire for Him to do this? Are you ready to hold on to Him today and say, “Father, if you do not heal me, I won’t let You go?” The Lord will visit you today, and your story will change for the best.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Salvation is great, but you must ensure you are genuinely saved. After having a definite encounter with the Lord that leads to salvation, there are some signs that will confirm to you that your salvation is genuine. One of these signs is that your emphasis would no longer be on what Jesus can do for you, but what you can do for the Lord. The realisation of how close you were to Hell before God’s mercy reached out to save you will birth a heart of gratitude in you the moment you are genuinely saved. You will then feel the urge to serve God wholeheartedly in order to reciprocate His love. Genuine salvation births heartfelt service. If you say you are born again and nothing ever prompts you on the need to work for Jesus, that salvation is questionable. In Acts 9:6, as soon as Saul had an encounter with Jesus on his way to Damascus, he asked the Lord, “What do you want me to do?” Today, after people say they are saved, they only bombard heaven with their petitions and prayer requests. God will definitely meet your needs, but have you ever said, “Lord, thank You for the salvation of my soul. How can I show my gratitude for Your love? What can I do for the One who loved me and died for me? “If you ask the Lord these questions, He would most probably tell you the same thing He said in Mark 5:19b to the erstwhile mad man of Gadara:
“Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee.”

Genuine salvation makes you more responsible and responsive to God. After I was saved, I wanted to know what I could do for Jesus, because God had opened my eyes to see how close I was to Hell, and He made me realise I was now on my way to Heaven. This is why I find it distasteful to hear that some people who have been saved for three years have never witnessed Jesus Christ to anyone. After I was saved, I could not keep it to myself. I was ready to tell all who cared to listen that I was saved. I was also ready to serve. On one of such occasions, one of my ex-students drove by me and saw me carrying a big basket of sawdust on my head, and he screamed in surprise that his lecturer could be doing that in a church at Ebute Metta, Lagos. The location of our church at this time was like a slum. However, that did not change anything about my desire to serve my Saviour and Redeemer. Does the realisation of the great things God has done for you motivate you to go the extra mile for Him in witnessing and giving? How committed are you to the expansion of God’s Kingdom on earth? I urge you to become a responsible member of God’s Kingdom today. 
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Through the Lord’s Prayer, we understand that everything that happens in Heaven is nothing short of God’s will. Matthew 6:10 says,
“Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”
This implies that Heaven is not a place where you go and sin, disobey or do anything that God does not approve of. Heaven is not for haters of God but for those who truly love Him. For this reason, anyone who cannot fit into God’s will on earth would not be allowed to pass through the gates of Heaven. (Revelation 22:15). To enter into God’s place of abode, God expects you to start living the life of Heaven right here on earth. It is possible to achieve this when you give your life to Jesus Christ and allow Him to live His life through you (Galatians 2:20). Therefore, if there is one thing you must do in order to make Heaven, it is to fit into God’s plan for your life and pursue nothing short of His will, just as Jesus Christ did (John 4:34). If you cannot walk in His will throughout your lifetime on earth, there is no way for you to get into Heaven.

In the same vein, it is very important to do things in order. God is a God of order. To do things in order means to follow the format, principles and protocols laid down by a higher authority. There is order and protocol in Heaven. To do well in your race to Heaven, you need to understand and follow this divine order and protocol (1st Chronicles 15:12-13). Although the Bible says there is only one God, it further reveals that this God is in three persons: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. In John 10:30, Jesus declared that He and His Father are one, and yet while referring to the persons of the Trinity, in Matthew 28:19, He followed a certain order; He said:
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:”
When we therefore baptize believers in Christ, it must be done following the order declared by the Lord Himself. We do not say because Jesus Christ has a Name that is above every other name, that the order should be changed to read: God the Son, God the Holy Spirit and God the Father. When you violate the law of order, you violate the will of God. Nothing is done just for fun in Heaven; everything there is done to reflect God’s will, law or order. There is a divine arrangement in place in Heaven: God is on His throne, the four living beings come next, and then the 24 elders (Revelation 4:2-6). That is divine order. In serving God, you must do everything decently and in order. How compliant are you in this?
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.