₦airaland Forum

The promotion that comes from God is worth waiting for; never settle for the promotion of men. Man can promote you today and demote you the next day. When man promotes you, they will expect something in return, but when God promotes you, all your sorrows will turn to joy and you will have absolute peace even in the midst of trouble. God's promotion usually shuts the mouth of detractors. Your detractors are those who boasted that you would never rise in their presence, and those who threatened that they would use the power of their position to destroy you, because you have refused to bow to their gods. They are those who, because of your uncompromising conviction, have said they will never recommend you for promotion as long as they are on the seat of power. I have good news for you: by this time tomorrow, their promotion will be at your mercy in Jesus' Name. They will never be able to carry out their mischievous plans against you in Jesus' Name. Concerning such people, the word of God in Psalm 21:11 says,
"For they intended evil against thee: they imagined a mischievous device, which they are not able to perform."

When God promotes you, you will go from success to success. This is why you need to make Him your ally. You need to come to Him, and let Him take over your life. The Lord's decision is always final. If He decides to promote you, no man can demote you. If He says this is your season, no accuser can deny you access. If He decides to bless you, no curse can prevail over you. All you need to do is to ensure His presence never departs from your life. There is someone reading this Devotional: by the time God starts with you, the whole world will be amazed. God promoted Joshua from being a messenger to the position of a commander. When God told him to take over the mantle of leadership from Moses and lead the children of Israel to the Promised Land, Joshua thought God was joking. God had to reassure him repeatedly that as He was with Moses, He would be with Him (Joshua 1:5-9, Joshua 3:7). Irrespective of how forceful the opposition confronting you is, when God is promoting you, He will cause you to experience certain blessings that will make all your enemies crumble. You will be able to do things you never thought you could do. However, God will not promote a person who is just folding his hands doing nothing. It is the soul of the diligent that will be made fat (Proverbs 13:4). If you are a hardworking person, God will reward you. God does not bless the lazy. What you sow is what you reap. If you want to soar, you have to go the extra mile and be a benchmark in the lifestyle of holiness and excellence.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Great faith is a kind of faith that works wonders in the life of an individual. It brings into manifestation the miracle-working power of God and makes one see His glory. Jesus referred to this kind of faith when He said to Martha,
"Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?"
John 11:38

The power of God is beyond human understanding. For this reason, you need to believe what God says, even when you don't know how He will do it. This is where faith comes in. There will always be a reason to doubt, but we must continue to suppress all doubts with great faith in God. Are there mountains in your life that you want removed? Are there steps you want to take that will lead to your breakthrough but you are having doubts about? Are there promises you received from God for which fulfillment seems impossible now? All will be well, and my God will remove every mountain before you. He will bring you to your desired destination in Jesus Name.

Unbelief is very dangerous because it displeases God. When the Almighty speaks to you and says what He will do, don't begin to scratch your head for a rationalization of its possibility. Like the children of Israel, contemporary believers are afraid of stepping into their glorious destinies because of unbelief (Hebrew 3:18-19). In Mark 3:1-5, Jesus went into a synagogue and there was a man there with a withered hand. Jesus told him to stretch out his hand, even though he knew his hand was withered. If that man had refused to act in great faith, he would have missed his miracle. As a child of God, when you say you believe God, your next action must show that you truly do. Exhibition of great faith produces the supernatural. This will lead to events that contravene the laws of nature taking place in your life. One of my daughters was told that her womb was too small to nurture a child to the point of delivery. This was the doctor's report, and the doctor was right because that was his field of specialty. However, God wanted to show to the doctor and to my daughter that He is the Doctor of all doctors and He can overrule any report. By His awesome power, the same womb that the doctor said could not nurture a child carried and gave birth to four children at once. It is only in God that such compelling events can happen, but it takes great faith in Him to reverse the irreversible in your life. This is why you need to come to Him and make Him your all in all. What is the physical challenge you are having in your body? By the power of God, an end has come to it today in Jesus' Name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

There is nothing as valuable as the word of the Lord. Its value lies in the fact that it will always fulfill that which the Lord has spoken. The words of men, as noble as they may sound, can never be relied on. You must have experienced on several occasions politicians making promises that will never come to pass. Some of them build roads with their mouths while some others make empty promises of employment for the youths. However, when God speaks, it is done! Having experienced the efficacy of God's word, the Psalmist in Psalm 119:89 made this declaration:
"For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven."

You need to place a high premium on any word from the Lord. It takes the word of the Lord to experience the supernatural. Prophet Elijah received the word of the Lord on the exact place to go in order to be sustained during famine (1 Kings 17:8-9). There are many people who are wandering through life because they do not know what to do. That will not be your portion in Jesus' Name. I decree in the Name of my Father, the Maker of the heavens and the earth, that you will receive direction from Him that will position your life at an advantage.

If you are one of those who think that their problems are far from the touch of the supernatural, I have good news for you: before the end of the first quarter of this year, what the Lord will do in your life will attract the presence of the media. When the children of Israel were bringing the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem, something remarkable occurred along the way. In order to avoid the anger of the Lord, they had placed the Ark of the Covenant in the house of Obed-Edom, someone they considered a never-do-well. However, by the presence of the supernatural in the life of Obed-Edom, a never-do-well suddenly began to do well. He who was a nobody became somebody. The man who they had all concluded would die poor began to enjoy abundant wealth. I want you to know that the moment you make room for the presence of the supernatural in your life, anything called poverty will become a stranger to your house, because wherever God is, there must be abundance. In 1 Kings 17:8-16, the widow of Zarephath had only one meal left before the carrier of the supernatural arrived on the scene. The moment Elijah arrived, the last meal of this widow became her first of many. Absolute poverty gave room to absolute prosperity. Make up your mind to serve the Lord, and He will guide you on the exact steps to take for your life to turn around for the better. God is waiting for you to release yourself totally to Him; you will be amazed by the instructions He will release to you that will make you the envy of all.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Result-producing prayers are prayers that remove mountains. They are prayers that put the forces of hell to flight. They part Red Seas and make a way for you into your promised land. These are prayers that guarantee the achievement of impossible feats and open the door to outstanding success. They are prayers that put business ideas in the heart of entrepreneurs and make their businesses remain at the cutting edge of prosperity even during an economic crunch. It is the type of prayer that stills every storm in the life of an individual. Result-producing prayers make deliverance from evil powers possible. By these prayers, a beggar is raised from the pit and made a channel of blessings to generations after him. From today, your prayers will command outstanding results in Jesus' Name.

A lot of people pass through this world like an ant: unnoticed and unknown. Their minds are so beclouded by the powers of darkness that they do not understand the will of God for their lives. There are several people at various crossroads in life who have no clue of what to do next. For some, their hopes are dashed and purpose lost. It is only in the place of prayer - result-producing prayer - that you can put a stop to such activities of the devil. Prayer is a wonderful privilege the saints of God can use to access the promises of God. When you engage in violent prayer, it releases your faith. Faith in turn enables you to call those things that be not as though they exist. It sees life in death, prosperity in poverty, salvation in the enslavement of sin, fruitfulness in barrenness, redemption in destruction and miracles in the face of insurmountable problems.

The problem I have seen in the Body of Christ is that ministers theorise prayer. Prayer is a potent weapon that can produce speedy results. It should be consciously engaged in settling any unrest, challenges, confrontations, intimidations and difficulties that one faces in the journey of life. Prayer is not theoritical, but a practical demonstration of God's power. I have been to prayer meetings where ministers preach so much about prayer but end up not leading people in prayers. I have also seen people, who were asked to lead prayers, get distracted by other issues after getting to the pulpit. The power of the cross of Calvary will destroy every yoke, bondage, spell, attack and curse that has been waging war against your prayer life in Jesus' Name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

One of the utmost desires of every human being is to be fruitful. We derive our drive for fruitfulness from the command that God gave to our spirit after creation in Genesis 1:28:
"And God blessed them, God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth."

To be fruitful means to have outstanding results in one's assignment or chosen career. Fruitfulness is having excellent results where others are failing. It is to be highly favoured where others are struggling, and making progress where others are either retrogressing or remaining stagnant. Fruitfulness means being a vessel of honour while some are vessels unto dishonour. My prayer is that the Lord will reveal to you the secrets of good fruitfulness in Jesus' Name.

The first secret of good fruitfulness is absolute dependence on the One who infused our spirit with the drive to be fruitful: God. God plays a prominent role in the fruitfulness of His children. This is why you need to settle it in your mind that there is nothing you can achieve without the help of the Almighty God. Those who understand this secret never attempt to run ahead of God. Jesus in John 15:5 said,
"I am the vine, ye are the branches; He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing."

No amount of human labour would suffice if God is not involved. This is why you need to run your endeavours in partnership with Jesus. If you partner with Jesus, you can never suffer loss because He is committed to giving you what money cannot buy. Money cannot buy you a good name; neither can money buy you peace of mind or guaranteed protection.

Another secret of good fruitfulness is avoiding strife and division. These manifest carnality and they will hinder you from bearing good fruit in life. Any family where envy and provocation of one another persist cannot be fruitful. Any organisation where people are committed to breaking ranks cannot be fruitful. Any church where people are always pulling down one another through their actions and words cannot be fruitful. This is why the Bible admonishes us to always walk in the Spirit so that we will not fulfil the lust of the flesh. Let us always create an atmosphere of peace, love, joy and goodness, without undermining the importance of discipline. You will be amazed at how good our fruits would be under the leading of God.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

A lot of people go to unbelievable and unimaginable places seeking for solutions to their numerous problems and challenges, but all to no avail. Some people even go to the devil to find freedom. How can you seek freedom from an entity in bondage? Today, I pray for you that every wrong avenue from which you have been seeking freedom will be shut in Jesus' Name. The Almighty God will show you solutions to the challenges confronting you in Jesus' Name. It is often said that you cannot give what you don't have. This is very true, and that is why you need to run to Jesus for all of your needs. There is no question in your life that He does not have an answer to. There is no problem He cannot solve, no sickness He cannot heal and no negative report that Jesus cannot overturn. There is no pit dug for you that He cannot close, neither is there any weapon fashioned against you that He cannot raise a standard against.

Beloved, it's only in Jesus that you can have true freedom. If you really want to be free, you need to become a disciple of His. A disciple of Jesus is a follower of His person and principles. There are many people who go to church and deliverance meetings who are not disciples of Jesus. They are just among the multitudes who are interested in His miracles and blessings, and yet have no interest in making Him their personal Lord and Saviour. Becoming a disciple of Jesus is a personal decision wherein an individual has to make up his mind to respond to the love of God. It is accepting to be on the Lord's side. It is a deliberate intention to pay close attention to the word of God and allowing your life to be guided by it. This is the only way your freedom can be guaranteed. Over and over again you hear in adverts that tobacco smoking is dangerous to health, yet some people have remained under its bondage. Even some medical doctors, who know the serious negative effects of smoking, cannot help themselves from the bondage of this habit. Today, there shall be an end to every habit that is injurious to your life in Jesus' Name. Come to Jesus and surrender to Him absolutely. Only after doing this will you enjoy total freedom from all bondage of strange voices, satanic oppression, obsession, suppression and depression. He is the only Truth that can set you free. Once you are set free in Jesus and you continue to abide in Him, no one can put you back in bondage again. An end has come to all the works of the devil in your life. Now is the dawn of a new beginning. No matter how much you have been afflicted by the agents of hell, your freedom has finally come in Jesus' Name. I release the power of God to deliver you from all demonic attacks right now, in Jesus' Name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Do you know that besides physical death there is also material death? One of the most dread and avoided passages in the Bible is Deuteronomy 28:15-68. Ironically, one of the best loved and most read passages of Scripture come from the first 14 verses of the same chapter. People want to read about God's blessings but they never want to be told about the curses. However, it is very instructive to read the passages that talk about the curses too, so that you can discern if your life is manifesting any of the curses and to seek spiritual help if that is the case. These passages also help us to know what the God who blesses His obedient children can do to those who disobey Him. It is also good to take a careful study of those who were placed under a divine curse in the Bible, so that you can steadfastly avoid their errors.

One repercussion for disobeying God is material death brought about by several agents of death. According to Deuteronomy 28:15-68, for the act of disobedience, the disobedient fellow shall be cursed everywhere he or she goes. That means, spiritually, such a fellow is wearing the garment of curses! When a person is cursed by God, wherever he or she goes, people will just find themselves opposing him or her, even without real provocation. Divine curses attract other types of curses to the fellow who is cursed. Also, when an individual is under a divine curse, the curses that men place on him will require no demonic power to make them work; they will just ride on the existing cursed climate surrounding the fellow. It is a terrible thing to come under a divine curse! If you are under a divine curse, do everything possible today to come out of it! For a fellow under a divine curse, everything God has made will begin to fight against that fellow. Friends will turn against him or her. Opportunity will shut its door. Good health will take its flight. Promotion will be on vacation. Success will run away. The life of that individual will attract all kinds of evils: disappointments, unending struggles, frustrations, sorrow, losses, wasted efforts, and every unpleasant experience. When Cain was cursed by God in Genesis 4:11-12, he understood the spiritual implication of this and he immediately began to pray for divine mercy. If he did not do this, everything and everyone would have worked against him. Does it appear like everyone and everything is fighting against you? Find out if you are under a divine curse and immediately go to God in repentance and ask for His mercy.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

To be a successful farmer, there are several activities you must carry out in the right order. You have to get a suitable farmland, cut the grass and fell the trees, make the ridges and thereafter sow your seeds. After sowing, you have to watch out for weeds that come to destroy your harvest, and when they show up, you have to take them out of the way. You have to also water your seed always. If you do all these, you will get a bountiful harvest. All these are a reflection of what you need to do in order to get a bountiful harvest in the Kingdom of God. One important point you need to take to heart is that after you have done your part, God is the One who gives the increase (1 Corinthians 3:6). Every increase that comes to your seed comes from God and not necessarily from the soil. This season, the Lord will give you increase in every good area you are sowing into in Jesus' Name.

However, what you reap will be determined by what you have sown. For instance, the young boy in John 6:5-13 did not only give bread, he also gave fish to Jesus. If you give Him bread, He will multiply it back to you. If you give Him more than bread, you will also get more than multiplied bread. The boy gave the Lord bread and fish, and at the end of the day, he got 12 baskets full of bread and fish. One lesson here is that sowing and reaping is not the exclusive preserve of adults. Teach your children to sow into the Kingdom of God. Teach them to pay tithes on the gifts they receive from their uncles, aunties and friends of their parents. They can even tithe their pocket money as they go to boarding school or university. The earlier they imbibe such Kingdom principles, the better for them.

Indeed, if you give the Lord more than bread, you will get more than bread in your harvest. In 2 Kings 4:8-17, the rich woman of Shunem started by providing food for Elisha. She then moved beyond providing bread to providing accommodation. When her harvest came, God went beyond bread and took care of a long standing need in her life that she had already given up hope on: her desire for a child. The seed she sowed into Elisha's life defied all scientific and diabolical reasons for her barrenness and gave her a baby boy. God knows your needs - even your deep, unvoiced needs. What are you giving to Him? If you are not yet giving Him anything, start giving something today! Are you giving only what you can easily part with? Take a step further today and sow sacrificially. Your seed will carve out a path into the fullness of your joy.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

"And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient."
Romans 1:27-28

From the scripture above, it is true that nature abhors a vacuum. Your mind was designed to retain the knowledge of God. However, if it is not used for that purpose, do not be surprised that it will become filled with junk and warped reasoning. How true the word of God is throughout the ages! What this scripture foretold centuries ago is exactly what we find being manifested right before our very eyes today. One reason why some people attach themselves to sodomy, lesbianism, bestiality and all kinds of abominable acts today is because they have shut their hearts to the truth of God's word. This includes those gays who profess to be religious. Such people do not have a true, inward relationship with God. Are you battling with evil thoughts? Then fill your mind with the knowledge of God, His word, His ways and His testimonies, and there will be no space for junk and the lies of the devil in it.

Do you know that God is seriously searching for those who are seeking for Him? The Bible in Psalm 14:2 says:
"The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God."

Wherever He finds them, irrespective of the religious sect they belong to, one way or another, He charts a path for them to come out, get to know and serve Him in the right way. This was the experience of Cornelius. This officer in the Roman army was still practicing judaism after Jesus had come to introduce a salvation by faith in Him. Despite the fact that Jesus had come and had finished the work of salvation, and the gospel was being preached, Cornelius continued worshipping God the same way he had always done before. Nevertheless, God saw the sincerity of his desire for Him, and He arranged for him to meet Apostle Peter, who taught him the new and living way to God. There are people in different faiths who are truly seeking God but are doing so wrongly. Pray that like Cornelius, God will lead them the right way, out of where they are into His Kingdom.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

One great expectation of the Almighty God is that man, whom He created in His image and likeness, will appreciate His benevolent deeds to them. It is unfortunate, however, that from generation to generation man has been ungrateful. This is even more pronounced in these last days (Romans 1:21, 2 Timothy 3:2). From Luke 17:11-19, we can see how expectant our Heavenly Father is for us to express appreciation whenever He does us good. Our Lord Jesus Christ, who came to show us the character of the Father, revealed this expectation to us through His reaction when only one leper returned to say "Glory to God in the highest", even though ten were healed.
"And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger."
Luke 17:17-18

When we fail to appreciate God for who He is and for what He continuously does for us, we rob Him of His rightful glory and honour. Indeed, ingratitude is an act of robbery against God. It is also dangerous, because your joy cannot be full if you are unthankful. Of the ten lepers that were healed, the only one we can consider to have received the fullness of joy is the one who returned to give glory to God, because Jesus crowned his healing with wholeness.

There is another dimension to being grateful to God, which has to do with our appreciation of what He did for us when He gave His only begotten Son as atonement for our sins. The only way to show our gratitude for this gift is to accept His offer of salvation, which is free for us but which cost the life of the immaculate Son of God. We must embrace this offer with every sense of gratitude because there are consequences for rejecting it. Hebrews 2:3 says,
"How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;"

Beloved, the most profound gratitude we can show to God, for all the things He has done for us, is to accept the Lordship of Jesus Christ and to live by the ideals He brought from His Father. God bless you as you do so today.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In 1 Thessalonians 5:17, the Holy Spirit says this to us: "Pray without ceasing". This statement is not a piece of advice but rather a command. The reason why we should obey this command is revealed in the words of our Lord Jesus Christ to His disciples in Luke 22:40:
"Pray that ye enter not into temptation."

The disciples did not take this admonition seriously for obvious reasons of the sorrow that overwhelmed their hearts after their Master's valedictory speech. This is a lesson to us all that we should not allow circumstances weaken our prayer lives. The result of their prayerlessness was catastrophic. Most of them lacked the courage to stand firm when their Master was arrested. They would have obtained the needed courage in the place of prayer. They therefore could not resist the temptation of running away. Peter, the one who had appeared to be the boldest among them turned out to be bold only in the flesh; he ended up denying his master three times. He had no spiritual courage to follow through with his boast of readiness to die with the Master (Matthew 26:35). What a great lesson to us all! The arm of flesh will always fail (Jeremiah 17:5).

There are many lessons we can learn from the story of the widow in Luke 18:1-8; first of which is that the judge intervened in her case not because he was interested in her. Rather, it was her relentless prayer that compelled him to act and avenge her of her enemies. Secondly, this woman did not change her prayer at any time. In other words, she was consistent in her prayer, and so there was no need for additional witnesses to be called in, or for more evidence to be presented. Many people gamble in their prayer lives, not knowing exactly what they need. They are unstable like the waves of the sea, being driven by the wind. Concerning such people, Apostle James in James 1:7-8 writes:
"For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways."

Our Lord Jesus Christ through this story assures us that our heavenly Father, unlike the unjust judge, will answer us speedily, but on one condition: if we pray in faith and trust in His justice. Therefore, ask of the Father today in faith, and you will receive beyond your wildest imagination.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

When God opens treasures to you but blinds your enemies from seeing them, the experience is simply wonderful. However, when your tomorrow becomes permanently settled for good, it is even more wonderful. This is what the Lord sent His word to do in Isaiah 3:10:
"Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings."

Beloved, if you are genuinely born again and in right standing before God, no matter what the devil does, no matter how hard he fights against you, and no matter the number of forces that gather together to stand in your way, you will prevail at the end. Sometimes, God keeps quiet and allows your enemies to believe that they have the upper-hand against you; but just when they think it's all over for you, the Lord will suddenly arise on your behalf and bring them under your feet. Also, never think that your labours are in vain. They are not! God keeps a record of them. That you did not enter your harvest today does not mean your harvest is lost forever. You shall not lose your harvest! There can only be some delay, some temporary setback, but you will enter your harvest. Have you been separated from your harvest for so long? This season, the Lord will arise for you, scatter all the impediments on your way and give you a great harvest, in Jesus' Name.

Beloved, it shall be well with you. Your tomorrow shall be alright. Your tomorrow is secured in God and not in your nation's economy. When God prospers you to the level where you can say, "By the grace of God, I now have enough to take care of me and my family for the rest of our lives", then that can be described as being even more wonderful. Beyond this, the experience of the widow of Zarephath in 1 Kings 17:8-16 can be described as most wonderful because, of all the households in a country suffering a nationwide famine, this widow's household was the only one singled out for favour. The miracle of divine provision was limited to her particular household alone. When you are singled out this way, the negative things that affect others will not affect you. Also, the good things that others cannot get, no matter how hard they try, will be yours with little or no effort. This year, the Lord will single you out for protection against any form of famine, disease or pestilence. The Lord will single you out for an uncommon blessing that will leave your enemies in the dark in Jesus' Name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

There are so many wonderful things to know about the person of God the Son. His uniqueness is summarised in Colossians 2:9:
"For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily."

He came to this world in the form of flesh to demonstrate the character of the 3 personalities found in the person of God. This means that if you want to know more about all the other persons of the Godhead, all you need to do is to take a close look at Jesus. He is the Great Physician who can heal all sicknesses and diseases. He is the One who can set the captives free and destroy all the works of the devil. Most importantly for us, He is the Saviour (Matthew 1:21). When He visited Zacchaeus, He declared to him that He had come to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10). His blood cleanses from all sins (1 John 1:7), and it is only through His Name that we can be saved (Acts 4:12).

Several years ago, I visited an African nation and my host began to tell me about a particular government minister of that nation who was a very terrible man. He had killed quite a number of people and was so vicious that he was nicknamed "the Cobra". When he said that, the Spirit immediately told me to go and preach to him. I told my host, "I need to go and preach to the Cobra". He looked at me in disbelief and said, "Sir, it appears you do not understand what I have been saying". Then I replied, "If he is as bad as you say he is, then he needs salvation, and no other person can save him but Jesus". My host reluctantly agreed to take me to his house, but he told me that he would stay back in the car. "If I wait for one hour and you do not come out, I will drive off", he said. I agreed, and asked him to call the Cobra and inform him that a prophet is coming from Nigeria with a message for him. When I met the Cobra at his house, I said to him, "Sir, I have a message for you from the Lord". "What message?" He asked. "Your days are numbered, your judgment is at hand, your cup is about to overflow, but the Almighty God has sent me to tell you that despite all your atrocities, He still loves you". Within 15 minutes of talking, the Cobra was on his knees asking how he could be saved. Every "cobra" in your life shall be arrested today in Jesus' Name! However, one effective way of doing this is by introducing Jesus Christ the Saviour to your enemies. I know this is the last thing some people will want to do. If you lead your enemies to the Saviour, you will have rest because they will become your defence and supporters. Don't stop until all your enemies are saved.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Sin has wages for anyone who partakes in it (Romans 6:23). The word of God is so true about this. Do you know that the occurrence of most sicknesses and diseases can be traced to the problem of sin? As a child of God, if you find yourself sick at anytime, it is proper to first check yourself and be sure that sin is not secretly doing its dirty work on you. There are times when I have prayed from my heart for the sick and some of them either remained sick or even died. At such times, I returned to God to ask what could be wrong. "Lord", I would ask, "What is happening? I have done what you asked me to do. You said these signs shall follow the believers, and that if I lay my hands on the sick they shall recover; why is it that these ones have failed to recover?" The response I often got was "Son, you don't know the full story". In other words, sin was secretly at play in some of those cases.

Several years ago, I was invited to pray for a certain chief in Ogun State, Nigeria, who was sick. When I got there, I asked him if he was a Christian, and he responded in the affirmative. "Are you born-again?" I asked. "Yes, I am a child of God" was his reply. Then I assured him that he was going to get well. I prayed, but nothing happened. I sent two of my prayer warriors under strict conditions to pray and fast for seven days interceding for this man, but nothing happened. Thereafter, I myself decided to go on a 21-day fast for him, but that night, the Lord told me it was good to fast, but not for this chief, because he was not going to be healed. "Lord", I protested, "He told me he is a believer". The Lord told me to ask him seven simple questions that every born-again Christian would find easy to answer. When I did, he realised that certain events that were shrouded in secrecy were out. I asked him if he had repented of a particular incident over which he had a case in court. He had drowned the boat of some witnesses who were on their way to testify against him in court. To keep this secret from leaking out, he had poisoned the fellow who drowned the boat for him. If the secret ever got out, he would have lost the court case. Instead of repenting of these grievous sins, he simply warned me not to visit his house again. Are you sick? Is that sickness caused by a hidden sin you haven't confessed? There is a particular reader of this devotional who has been battling with one sickness or the other. If you can trace it carefully, you will realise it started when you began to steal money from your church. Repent and restitute your ways, and you will be healed.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

When our Lord Jesus Christ walked the earth, in several of His parables, He used the principles of farming to teach His disciples about how God's Kingdom operates. It is therefore important for us to apply the knowledge of farming principles in our quest to obtain a good harvest from God's Kingdom. Isaiah 55:10 gives us some insight in this regard:
"For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:"

From this verse of Scripture, we understand that God is the one who gives seed to the sower. He gives you seed, and He expects you to sow it. Never eat your seed! Even physical seeds usually taste bitter or unpalatable to the taste buds because they were not designed to be eaten in the first place. May God give you the grace to sow all the seeds you need to sow in order to generate your desired harvest!

Besides giving the sower seed, God also gives the eater bread. There is food for the eater and seed for the sower. After sowing, God expects you to water the seed. Don't go to sleep after sowing your seed - get ready for some really hard work. As a farmer's son, I can tell you a few things about farming. Before you can even sow, you have to clear the ground and build heaps. After sowing, you have to do some weeding. As your seed is germinating, weeds will begin to grow alongside; you have to get rid of these. While it may be easy to sow, it is not easy to weed. One fellow can sow on a vast expanse of land, but it will be very difficult for the same fellow to clear that land all by himself. To obtain a quality harvest, God expects you to follow sound farming principles. Learn from the farmer! Not every harvest is meant for the stomach. Some must be kept aside for the next planting season. After you have sown your seed, water it with prayer, fasting and thanksgiving. After Abraham offered a sacrifice to God, he did not go to sleep. He stood there watching, waiting for God to receive it. While he waited, he saw some birds descending on his sacrifice in order to destroy it. He drove them away and thereafter the fire fell. You can weed your spiritual farm after sowing seeds by living righteously before God. The devil will come craftily to introduce tares of sin into your life so as to destroy your harvest. Hence, after sowing, you must remain holy, prayerful, thankful and completely obedient in order to enter into your harvest.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

One of characteristics of the godless is that they seek their personal goals without thinking about God. The things they seek after have overtaken the space that God created in them for Himself. Do you know that today, believers, using the excuse of not having time, are chasing after material things at the expense of cultivating personal relationship with God?
"The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good."
Psalm 14:1

If you think in your heart that God does not exist, even when you have not verbalised such thoughts, God has heard you. If you are one of those who believe that although God exists, He is too slow, too weak or too inconsequential to bring about the needed intervention in a given situation, you are in the same class with the godless. God simply calls such people fools.

Why would God call someone a fool? If a person considers the whole observable universe - the sun, the moon, the stars, galaxies, planets, plants, the seas, lakes, rivers, beautiful landscapes, all the mineral deposits in the soil, water springs, the skyline, rain and various weather conditions - and still concludes in his or her heart that these things created themselves, though accepting that no human hand created them, such a person is best described as being on a fool's path. You do not need anyone to tell you that there is a God somewhere; a very great and massive God who created all these things, and who supervises their operations. A fool is someone who denies obvious truths and facts. Similarly, a fool is one who decides to live the way he or she pleases. Many people live their lives the way they do right now because they never think of the day of reckoning. Believe it or not, that day will come for everybody. A fool also is the fellow who pushes God aside but pursues the gifts and blessings He gives. How can you desire to receive gifts from God without wanting to know the Giver of such gifts? Unfortunately, many believers are letting go of their personal relationship with God for material pursuits and are fast becoming fools. They are on the highway of foolishness. Are you considered a fool? Repent, beat a retreat and make God your number one priority today.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

The Holy Spirit made it clear that some of the prevailing characteristics of people living in the last days would be selfishness, self-centredness and inconsideration for others (2 Timothy 3:1-5). But for those of us who are the elect of God, He says this to us:
"Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others."
Philippians 2:4

If you are fully focused on yourself and hardly think of others, you have been overtaken by the bug of the last days. If all your prayer points are centred on yourself and your family, you will need the further work of grace to sanctify you. When you are filled with the compassion of Jesus, other people's interest will be paramount in your heart. You will not want to offend them, and you will think more about their wellbeing. You will also intercede for people with various challenges in your extended family, church, community, state or nation. If you are struggling with helping others, you need to allow the Holy Spirit work on your mind to bring it in conformity with the mind of Christ.

When you manifest the mind of Christ, genuine humility will be seen in you. The mind of Christ will affect the way you run your business, ministry, family, etc. It will affect your love for those under you and the level of sacrifice you are willing to make for God and His people. Jesus could give up His life for many because of the kind of mindset He had. If you have the mind of Christ, regardless of the number of signs, wonders and miracles God has done through you, you will be unable to boss people around, virtually expecting people to worship you. If you have the mind of Christ, you will be a true servant leader, and you will obey God without conditions or limits. Only the fellow manifesting the mind of Christ will be able to give anything the Lord requests of him or her. With this mindset, just like Paul, you will be prepared to suffer any hardship, take any risk and even lose your life for Jesus (Acts 21:8-14). With the mind of Christ, you will be able to say like Paul,
"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."
Philippians 1:21

Our God is light, and in Him there is no space for the slightest speck of darkness (1 John 1:5). Those who profess having His nature cannot therefore harbour any element of darkness in them! Right from the beginning, the Lord caused there to be a clear distinction between light and darkness. After He commanded light to be, the next thing He did was to separate the light from the darkness, and He gave them distinct names to avoid any form of confusion (Genesis 1:4-5). Through these actions, God has established a template for those who profess His name to be separate from darkness. Just as God called light out of darkness at the beginning, He has also called us out of the darkness of this world into His marvellous light (1 Peter 2:9, 2 Corinthians 4:6). Having called us out, the next thing He did was to separate us from darkness, and then He gave us a unique identity (Colossians 1:13). Having done all these things, this one thing He demands of us: that we remain separate (2 Corinthians 6:17). As a believer in Christ, you have nothing in common with unbelievers. Your responsibility to them is to lead them to the true light. Believers are a kind and unbelievers are another kind (2 Corinthians 6:14-16). When believers begin to mate, fraternise and fellowship with unbelievers, they violate the law of kinds and evoke God's anger.

When there is a cross-breed of goat and dog, violating the law of kinds, what do you think will be the result? It will be a beast. The end product is usually strange, detestable and something abominable. Some people erroneously believe that God understands cross-breeds. No, He doesn't. He hates such with despicable firmness. In ancient times, the devil sowed the idea of cross-breeding. He caused fallen angels to mate with women, and he polluted the entire earth with the breed resulting from this aberration; all in an attempt to block the emergence of the seed of the woman earlier prophesied in Genesis 3:15. This brought so much grief to God to the extent that He decided to wipe out the whole human race. Today, when men mate with men or women mate with women, they violate the law of kinds established by God and cause Him grief. Also, when a man goes for gender-reassignment surgery to take on the features of a woman, develop breasts and even attempt to conceive, he is violating the law of kinds. In what ways are you violating the law of kinds today? Repent and straighten your crooked path! Cut off from that unequal yoke so that God can receive you.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

It often breaks my heart to see the children of God, who ought to value the word of God, which is the source of our power and our defence, trivialising it as if they do not know what they stand to lose when they do not heed it, or the danger inherent in ignoring it. The Bible warns us against such an attitude in Hebrews 2:1,
"Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip."

When the word of God comes to an individual, maybe in the form of prophecy, through the written word or by any other means, it is a wise thing to pay close attention to it. The word of God comes for many reasons and for different purposes. Going by Jeremiah 33:1-9, we can see that the word of God was sent to the people of Judah for the purpose of deliverance and for the restoration of their freedom which had been lost to the Chaldeans. For this reason, I always warn members of the congregation during our services never to dose off, because they do not know when God would send a specific word of prophecy that would settle their case. At often times in the Old Testament, before the people of God went to war, the word of God would go forth announcing their victory and that always settled the battle (2 Kings 3:17-19, 2 Chronicles 20:13-15). Likewise, in our meetings, before the people start to pray after the sermon has ended, God through His spoken word would often have already settled their cases. The word of God comes at times to bring peace in the time of crisis, as in the case of Judah (Jeremiah 33:6). When Jesus Christ was in the boat with His disciples and the devil was playing pranks through the tempest, a word of peace settled the turbulent waves of the sea (Mark 4:39). I therefore prophesy into your life right now, your troubled life, marriage, business or career receives peace now in Jesus' Name.

It is equally comforting to note that when a child of God is exposed to the word of God, he or she receives spiritual cleansing. It is therefore unfortunate for any child of God to run away from the sound teaching of the Bible by failing to read it, study it or listen to it being preached. To underscore this salient truth, the Lord Jesus Christ in John 17:17 prayed thus:
"Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth."
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In Genesis 14:17-24, God the Father was revealed to Abraham as the Possessor of heaven and earth. Abraham received this revelation, and he set his heart to run with it. He was ready to forfeit the spoils of war because he was fully persuaded that he would never lack. He could take the risk of starting afresh because he knew the Lord as Possessor of heaven and earth. The end result was that his wealth was greatly multiplied. Oh how true it is that the knowledge of God strengthens and births exploits! If you are afraid of poverty or of permanent loss, then you do not yet know the Father as Possessor of heaven and earth. If you are afraid of dying small or dying in want, then you have not yet appropriated this revelation of His Person in your spirit.

By the grace of God, I have seen this revelation of God as Possessor of heaven and earth work for me. In 1979, my father-in-the-Lord, together with me and four others visited Tulsa, Oklahoma for a Kenneth Hagin camp meeting for the very first time. We had made no prior hotel reservations because information about the camp meeting came to us quite late. Some people tried to discourage us from going by saying, "How would you go to far away America without a hotel reservation?" But we still resolved to go. Something within me told me that if my Lord has gone to prepare mansions for me in Heaven, He will surely provide a place of accommodation for me in America. On arrival, someone received us at the airport and began to call up different hotels. Even those that were about an hour's drive away were all fully booked, and we also did not have a means of transportation. Suddenly, it was impressed on my heart that we should call the nearest hotel to the venue of the camp meeting, telling them that we were missionaries from Africa and that we needed a room. The brother that received us checked the phone book and placed a call. Their response was that they would give us a room! I then told the brother to ask for another room. When he did, they asked us where we said we were from again. We repeated that we were missionaries from Africa. They then agreed to give us two rooms. On reaching the hotel, because I did not want us to share the same room with our father-in-the-Lord, I asked for yet another room. "Where did you say you are from?" I was asked. "We are missionaries from Africa, "I repeated, and the response was, "I will give you three rooms." The Lord will open your eyes to know Him as Possessor of heaven and earth, and He will solve all your accommodation-related problems in Jesus Name.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In Romans 6:23, the Bible establishes that there is a relationship between sin and death. From observation, we know that sickness is an agent of death. For the discerning mind, it follows that there is also a relationship between sin and sickness. In 1 Kings 17:17-18, when the son of the widow of Zarephat died, she cried out to God's servant saying,
"What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?"
1 Kings 17:18

What was she really saying? She had the understanding that death could come as a result of sin, and that sickness is an agent or forerunner of death. If you want to enjoy the long life that God has promised His children, you must therefore keep a safe distance from sin. If you are still living in sin after confessing Christ as your Lord and Saviour, and at the same time you expect God to keep death far away from you, you must be joking. Every act of sin you willfully engage in exposes you to the agents of death. You shall not destroy yourself before your God-ordained appointment with death in Jesus' Name!

Similarly, in Mark 2:1-12, when a man who was paralysed from the neck down was brought to Jesus, as bad as his condition was, the Lord simply ignored what every other person cared about and forgave him his sins first. Nobody thought this was relevant. The Lord did this because He could see that this man's spiritual condition was far worse than his physical state of health. For this reason, I often marvel when some ministers focus on healing the sick before preaching salvation to them. Several prayers for the sick are unanswered because of the presence of sin in their lives. It is wisdom to first deal with the sin in the life of the sinner before asking God to heal the fellow. If the sick sinner is healed before being asked to surrender to Jesus, he may refuse to surrender at all after receiving the healing. He may think his healing was by chance and not from your prayer, and if he returns to his sin, the sickness may come back. If he then dies in his sin, his soul will go to hell. But if the fellow is first made to receive Jesus Christ before being healed, there is a greater chance of him following the Lord. Even if the healing is not manifested, if he dies, his soul is saved from eternal hell. Always deal with sin first!
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

If you learn to give liberally to God, you will be rewarded with increase through divine favour. Whatever you give to the Lord will be multiplied. The widow of Zarephath, who was in a very sorry state, was asked to give the man of God a little cake from her last meal. Thank God she did. Millions of people have read about her all through the ages because of what she did. By that singular act of obedience, she has gained so much recognition and is a celebrity in God's Kingdom. Do you know that if she had focused more on her need, and if she had told the prophet to leave her alone, she would have taken a meal which would have been her very last before dying? May you not eat the last meal that could become your very first in a continuous line of blessings for the rest of your life!

Moreover, this woman gave God's servant a cake, but she got flour and oil in return. If you give God a cake, He will give you flour and oil on an enduring basis. He expects you to then do the baking yourself. He will not come down to do the baking for you. Beloved, do not sit down expecting money to rain down from Heaven. God can open doors, even mighty doors of blessings to you. However, when He does this, it is His expectation and your responsibility to recognise and walk through them. Such open doors will cause you to work hard.

After I was saved, I used to argue about tithes. As a mathematician, I told them that if 100% of my academician's salary was not enough for my needs, how would 90% be sufficient after paying 10% as tithe? One day, God cautioned me about this, and I began to pay my tithe. God then began to open doors of opportunities to me. As a lecturer, private practice was out of the question. One day my dean called me and said he just discovered that I was the best mathematics lecturer he had, and so he was sending me to teach in a particular secondary school for girls. Consequently, extra income flowed in. When the results of the school leaving certificate exams for these girls were released, they excelled in mathematics without stress, and the news spread. Other schools began to call for me. God's word is true. Are you faithful to God in your tithes? If you are, you will be creating a platform for open doors, but if you are not, you will be shutting the doors to blessings with your own hands.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

God's design for you as His child is not for you to pursue material things; He rather wants material things to pursue you (Deuteronomy 28:2, Psalm 23:6, Isaiah 60). When you pursue material things, you will use up so much effort, strength, wisdom and resources. Even after realising your goals, you might still not be satisfied. Do you know that if God is not behind your pursuit, time and again the goal posts can be shifted, thereby making the realisation of your dreams a mirage? There is someone reading this devotional who is in this very situation. Every year, you have continued to pursue a particular goal without success. Sometimes it appears within your reach, but before long, it becomes unattainable. Your goal keeps eluding you because you forsook your relationship with God to pursue your personal desire. If you can return fully to God today and remain with Him, you will suddenly realise that what you have been pursuing all these years is already in your hands.

A look at Matthew 6:24-33 reveals to us certain truths. First, God knows your needs. He does not need you to tell Him before He realises what you need. When God brings you into a new year, He definitely knows you and your family need food for 365 days, a roof over your head, clothing, transportation, energy and water, etc. He even knows the needs that you yourself have not yet identified. He does not just take a global but an eternal view over you and all that is yours. Also, He is interested in how you meet those needs. Those who do not know God have a way of meeting their own needs which is at variance with God's plans. The godless pursue material things at the expense of a personal relationship with God. If you are a bona fide child of God yet pursuing material things, then you are living like the godless. To simplify things for His people, God designed that we should pursue Him, and not things. He wants us to make Him our first priority in all that we do. As we seek Him, He will cause those things the godless are busy chasing after to come effortlessly to us. This year, stop being wise in your own eyes! Seek God as never before. Put Him first. Give Him time every day. Thank Him, praise Him, worship Him and obey Him. When you do all these, you will realise at the end of the year that your achievements have exceeded your expectations.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

One of the virtues that made the work of our salvation possible is humility. It took great humility for our Lord Jesus Christ to take up the form of a man and to die the shameful death of the cross. The secret of our Lord's humility lies in the state of His mind. For this reason, the Holy Spirit in Philippians 2:5 says this to us:
"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:"

Many Christians believe they are humble, but only adversity reveals a man's true character. It takes the mind of Jesus transplanted into you to experience true humility. God's humility is not feigned like what we generally see today. A man behaves and speaks as though he is humble, but under provocation he throws caution to the wind. At this point, you will see how haughty or cocky he really is. Are you struggling to stay humble? Ask that the mind of Christ be made manifest in you today! Do not stop asking until you see yourself manifesting Christ's humility. When you surrender your life to Jesus at salvation, the mind of Christ is grafted into your spirit (1 Corinthians 2:16). It however takes the sanctification experience to fully manifest this new mind without struggling. Through sanctification, there is an overflow of grace that is released to you, enabling you to easily manifest the nature of God that you have received through salvation.

We need true humility today like never before. Many years ago, I was the official interpreter for the founder of our church: translating his sermons from Yoruba, the local dialect, to English. Then one day, a pastor was asked to preach, and he came and asked me to interpret for him. I felt insulted. "Who do you think you are to be asking the interpreter of the General Superintendent to interpret for you?" I mused. Right then, God taught me a big lesson which cost me a lot, but thank God I was later restored. Later on, I became the General Overseer (G.O.) of the church, and I had the opportunity of visiting one of our church parishes. I got there during an evening service, and one of the deacons was about to preach. He had already opened his Bible to begin the message when he was told "the G.O. is here." I was brought up to the altar and he said to me, "Thank God you are here sir, please go ahead and preach." I answered, "No, you go ahead and preach, while I interpret for you." "I can't do that sir!" he replied. Then I said, "I command you to." For five minutes, he was shaking because here he was, a deacon preaching, and the G.O. was interpreting. The Holy Ghost then took control of him and he was able to focus on the word. Through humility, it becomes easy to submit one to another and to esteem others better than ourselves. Are you humble?
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

Anytime I remember what I suffered in the hands of Satan and his agents before I was redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, I cannot help but thank God for the salvation of my soul. As a matter of fact, fear was a major source of torment in my life before I met the Lord Jesus Christ. This fear was passed on to me by my mother, who later got saved by the grace of God. For fear that I might get killed, being her only male child, my mother sent me far away from my home-town. For several years I could not visit this town because I was afraid of death and I was afraid of the wicked people of this world. However, when the light of redemption beamed upon me and my family, we were liberated. This is why I am praying for you who may have been living in perpetual fear all the days of your life: that you will be delivered from the torment of fear in Jesus' Name. Jesus did it for me, and He will do it for you too. Deliverance from fear is one of the benefits of the redemption that Jesus Christ paid the utmost price for. Hear what the Bible says concerning this:
"Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage."
Hebrews 2:14-15

Another benefit of redemption is access to the throne of the Almighty God (Hebrews 4:16, Ephesians 2:18). At His throne, we lay down our petitions for His supernatural intervention over the challenges of our lives. Be assured in your spirit that once you are redeemed, you are in direct contact with the Almighty God. What brought about this privilege? Redemption!

For these reasons, if you are not yet saved, I am inviting you to the cross of Calvary, where Jesus Christ paid for your redemption in full. Confess your sins and accept Him as Lord and Saviour. Promise Him that you will abide by His Word and never to go back to the world. Something extraordinary will happen to you if you sincerely do this now. If you are a believer and you are still wallowing in fear, know that this is not your inheritance in Christ. Are you in doubt concerning your redemption in Christ? Consider where you may have missed your way and retrace your steps back to Calvary; restoration of your redemption awaits you there.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

When you are connected to the All-Sufficient God, you will not lack any good thing. Why? Bible scholars call Him Jehovah El Shaddai. In other words, He is the "Breasted One". A baby sucks from the mother's breasts. Every time the child calls for milk, it is always there. All of your needs can be fully satisfied in Christ. Sometime ago at our church in Ebute Metta (Lagos), I taught that when the Almighty God made this declaration:
"If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it."
John14:14
What He is actually saying in the original text, according to Bible scholars, is that if you ask anything from Him that He does not have, He will create it for you. How marvellous! I once told somebody of this and he in turn shared it with his friend. His friend said to him, "If your God is so powerful, why not ask Him to create for you a cow with four heads." But the man replied, "I don't need a cow with four heads. I would rather ask God to give me four cows. If you need the heads, you can have them while I keep the rest." This season, the All-Sufficient One will be more than sufficient for you! He will meet all of your needs and satisfy you right on time!

From the story of the widow in 1 Kings 17:8-16, besides the lesson of help coming just in time, and that of help being delivered every day, another lesson the Holy Spirit will have us pay close attention to is the lesson of the source of help being hidden from outsiders. This is absolutely wonderful! When some evil-minded individuals know that you are doing well and blossoming, they will try all they can to discover the secret of your progress so that they can destroy it. Their purpose may be to erase any leverage or advantage you may have over them. Some people have become victims of such evil minds. But when God hides the source of your blessing, your enemies will try in vain to stop you. This was the experience of the widow. Because there was famine in the land, everyone, including this woman, was starving and losing weight. Then God intervened by sending His servant to her and he hid in her house. Suddenly, people saw that she was shining and gaining weight. Her son was looking radiant and everything dramatically improved for them, but nobody could tell how. That will be your portion this season! The Lord will turn your situation around for good and hide the source of your change away from every enemy.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

The Almighty God is one, yet He manifests Himself as three different persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Different things happen that reveal the multifaceted nature of God's character whenever He manifests Himself as any of these three persons. When God manifests Himself as God the Father, the earth trembles, the hills melt and the enemies scatter (Nahum 1:5). When He manifests as God the Son, He is seen as the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29). He also comes in the likeness of the fourth man who meets you in the fiery furnace and terminates the power of fire (Daniel 3:25). As God the Son, He comes as a gentle Person who invites all who are heavy laden to come to Him for rest (Matthew 11:28). When God manifests as the Holy Spirit, He comes as the consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29). One man who experienced God as the consuming fire was Samson. Bound and delivered to his enemies, when the Holy Spirit came mightily on him, all the cords binding him were immediately consumed (Judges 15:14). This season, every cord that is tying you to the same spot shall be consumed by the fire of the Holy Ghost in Jesus' Name.

Moreover, speaking of God the Father, there are several things you need to know about Him; one of which is that He is the one who made the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1). Because He made the heavens and the earth and everything in them, in Genesis 14:19, He is called Possessor of heaven and earth. What a powerful title! You cannot know God as Possessor of heaven and earth and still live in poverty. This title of God was revealed to Abraham through Melchizedek, king of Salem. Ever since then, wealth and affluence have existed in Abraham's lineage. You cannot know God the Father as Possessor of heaven and earth and still be homeless. He will definitely create a place for you when you call upon Him. Your knowledge of God as Possessor of heaven and earth will release the power of material possessions to you. Do you have any challenge with accommodation? Maybe you have nowhere to lay your head. Jesus in John 14:2 says this to you:
"In my Father's house are many mansions..."
If you catch this revelation in your spirit, all your accommodation problems can be resolved when you call upon Him. Call upon Him today, and He will sort you out.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

While seeking God's face towards a particular year's Convention of our Church, the Lord asked me to go back to the basics. It was obvious we had forgotten some things, and God wanted to remind us of them. Indeed God's ways are different from our ways; hence the need for us to always humble ourselves before Him. The big things, deep secrets and outstanding thoughts we expect to get from God may not come through the avenues that we think they will follow. There are certain lessons God may want to teach us and He would send us to the ants (Proverbs 6:6)! This shows that He can send you to what you think you cannot get anything from. He can teach you great lessons using a familiar terrain. He can use vessels you consider too junior in the ecclesiastical hierarchy to teach you things that will blow your mind. This is why you have to remain humble and meek because God can only teach those who are meek.

One thing that can come between you and the divine knowledge that will transform your life is pride. 1 Peter 5:5 says God resists the proud. The word "resist" in this verse is used in the present continuous tense. To "resist" is to forcefully push back against something. It implies that if you are proud, all your attempts to move closer to God shall be rebuffed by Him. This is why the proud cannot stay on the same platform with God. Are you proud? Today, many people are proud of their achievements: how many members they have in their local church parish, the size of their tithe, how many churches they have planted, how many souls they have won etc. One thing such people forget is that we can do nothing without Him. John 15:5 says:
"I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing."

Some others boast over their wealth, or their privileged office or position, even their beauty and appearance. Some others have become distant from God because of the multiple academic qualifications they have acquired in various disciplines over the years; they forget that knowledge should set you free, and not cut you off from God. Whenever what you know attracts pride into your life, that knowledge has become counter-productive, capable of pushing you into serious trouble. Examine yourself today and ask God to destroy any trace of pride in you.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

For all those who have received the gift of righteousness through the finished work of Calvary, the design of God for our lives is that we live by His favour. The psalmist spoke prophetically about this in Psam 5:12:
"For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield."

The reality of this was manifested in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 2:52), and the early church also experienced the same (Acts 2:47). However, there are some keys that unlock the door to experiencing God's favour. One of these keys is found in Proverbs 11:25, which says:
"The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself"

Before you can access the fatness and abundance you desire from Heaven, you must first learn to give to the Lord what you treasure: your best and your all. This is what brings about the difference in results experienced by a person living by God's favour and a person living by labour; one is definitely easier to achieve than the other. Towards the end of a particular year, one of my sons preached on the difference between labour and favour. He cited two examples: Jacob and Isaac. According to him, when Jacob wanted a wife, he laboured for 14 years before he could get his heartrob, but when Isaac wanted to marry, he just went on a stroll. One laboured but the other was favoured. I have decided to enjoy divine favour. I am tired of labouring. I want to continually live in the realm of divine favour, and to do so, I will sow as I have never done before, because favour responds to the law of harvest.

Are you not tired of increase dependent on labour? Why exert everything you have for several years to get a particular blessing, when you can pay a little price through sowing and still get great results in a shorter time, without much stress? One effective way of redeeming the time, as admonished in Ephesians 5:16, is to dump less effective methods for better, faster and less stressful ways of doing things. You are not redeeming the time when you increase only through labour. This implies that so many things will have to wait until you have the strength to work for them. Why go by labour when you can rise on the wings of divine favour? Choose the vehicle to your place of destiny today!
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

How you start a year is very important, because it can dictate the tone for the year. But more importantly, how the year ends will be determined by the goals you set and your pursuit of them. Some people start a year with little or nothing but end it in a great way; whereas some other people who start the year with quite a lot have little or nothing to show by the end of it. Why is this so? To get the most out of a year, you need to understand the actors and factors at play in determining the course of the year. One of such actors is God.
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."
Matthew 6:33

At the onset of every year, most people go about seeking material things. They set material goals and device strategies to accomplish them. Thereafter, they begin a race down the line and shun anything that might affect the realisation of their goals, dreams and aspirations. Yet, at the end of the year, many are still miles apart from the attainment of those goals. Even when they attain their goals, such people are often still left with a great vacuum in their soul that nothing else can fill. This is simply the result of God being left out of the picture in their pursuit of material things.

By its very nature, wealth can be very elusive. Before dissipating so much energy in pursuing wealth like most people will do this year, please consider what the patriarchs of old said about it. King David said that it's possible to heap up wealth for users and spenders you do not know (Psalm 39:6). The Patriarchs also said it is very dangerous to put your trust in the riches you have amassed because you can be disappointed by them when you least expect it (Psalm 62:10, Proverbs 11:28). The preacher in Proverbs 23:5 further adds that riches can suddenly develop wings and take flight from where you think you have kept them securely. Where do the fly to? They fly towards heaven, back to God their original owner. For these reasons, you must put God at the centre of all your pursuits this year so that they can be meaningful. If you choose to seek and pursue after God, you will get the material things of this world with very little effort. This year, be wise! Don't waste your time and effort pursuing things that should be pursuing you.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

There are many misconceptions about God's demand for perfection. These misconceptions have led some people to erroneously conclude that perfection is an unrealistic aim in the Christian walk, and should therefore be abandoned. To debunk this line of thought, our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 5:48 re-echoes His Father's demand for our perfection. My prayer is that the power of God will come upon you today, and you will begin to live in perfection as God demands in Jesus' Name. Why do people see God's demand for our perfection as being unattainable? It's because they think perfection is to be attained by our strength. However, the truth of the matter is this: if man did not create himself but came to existence through the power and wisdom of God, by this same wisdom and power, God will help him to meet His demands. The problem with such people is unbelief. For this reason, the Bible in Hebrews 11:6 says:
"But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."

Unbelief breeds disobedience. The case of the first man and woman shows this. They fell into imperfection through their unbelief in the efficacy and infallibility of God's word! This is in contrast to Abraham, of whom God also demanded perfection, who responded to God's demand in faith. This is why the Scriptures say this about him:
"Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness."
Galatians 3:6

From God's point of view, perfection is total obedience to His instructions in faith. You are perfect if you obey what God asks you to do, even if it seems illogical or is politically incorrect. Obedience in faith brings justification, which is the key to perfection.

Do you find yourself in a state of unbelief? Are you one of those who don't believe perfection is attainable? If you are, you must pray today like the man whose child was tormented by the devils in Mark 9:24:
"And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief."
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

In Genesis 1:1-3, the Holy Spirit takes us back in time to the beginning of God's creation. In this account, we are introduced to the voice of God for the very first time. All He said here was "Let there be light", and light immediately appeared. That simple sound from Heaven instantly got rid of darkness. "Let there be light" could mean several things to different people, but basically it means "darkness depart!" In Mark 10:46-52, we read of a man who was born blind. He heard that Jesus was passing by, and so he began to cry to the Lord for mercy. He desired to hear a sound from Heaven, and he did all within his power to actualise his desire. "What can I do for you?" Jesus asked, and he answered, saying "Lord, I want my sight restored". The voice from Heaven sounded "Receive your sight", and immediately darkness gave way to light. Similarly, in Mark 5:1-15, the mad man of Gadara who had over 6000 demons living inside him had the opportunity of hearing a sound from Heaven. After he heard it, all those demonic forces in him promptly took their leave. Is your life surrounded now by the powers of darkness? I release the sound from Heaven to you: demonic powers and every form of darkness in your life departs now in the mighty Name of Jesus!

Prior to the sounding of the voice from Heaven in Genesis 1:3, there was so much chaos on earth; but immediately it sounded, light appeared and the first day was created. A young man once testified to his encounter with the creative power of the sound from Heaven. He was not only born blind, he also had no eye balls and his eye sockets were empty. One day, a great evangelist organised a week-long crusade in his area, and people daily led him there. On the first night of this crusade, the man of God preached about the creative power of God and the blind man's faith rose. "This is exactly what I need", he said, but he went home still blind. The following morning, while washing his face, he discovered that his eye sockets which used to be very cold because blood never flowed through them now had some warmth. On the second day of the crusade, still nothing happened. But on waking up the following day, in those empty sockets, he felt something bulging. On that third day of crusade, he heard a sound from Heaven saying "You can now open your eyes", and his eyes were opened. Are your eyes physically shut? The sound from Heaven is saying "Open your eyes now!" Are you spiritually blind? The Lord of Heaven is saying to you, "Eyes be opened now!"
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.