Category Archives: Maturity
Love & Grow
Philippians 1:9 “I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding”
Yesterday, we looked at the first of the five areas that you and I need to focus on for the rest of our lives and have a significant life both here on earth and in heaven. The first is, God wants us to centre our lives around Him. God wants to be the centre of your life and my life. Read the rest of this entry
The Blood
Jude 1:24 “Now, to the one with enough power to prevent you from stumbling into sin[a] and bring you faultless before his glorious presence to stand before him with ecstatic delight.” (TPT)
We start today’s devotional by delving deeper into 1 John 1 from yesterday. We are still looking at the two things that must be in place for us to take bold steps towards God and they are righteousness and single-mindedness. Read the rest of this entry
Multiply
Luke 13:20-21 “He also asked, “What else is the Kingdom of God like? It is like the yeast a woman used in making bread. Even though she put only a little yeast in three measures of flour, it permeated every part of the dough” (emphasis added).
Jesus is introducing another concept of the kingdom to us. He introduced the concept of ‘occupy’ and now He is introducing the concept of multiply. He says the Kingdom of heaven is like a yeast [it is little] put in a big measure of flower, and the little yeast multiplies its influence until the whole bucket Read the rest of this entry
Expressed
Gal. 5:22-23 “The Holy Spirit produces a different kind of fruit: unconditional love, joy, peace, patience, kind-heartedness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. You won’t find any law opposed to fruit like this.” (Voice]
We are going to run through the components of the fruit of the Holy Spirit and the first one Paul mentions is Love. This is unconditional love; it is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. The love Paul is referring to in today’s scripture reference is “Agape” – unconditional. It is only the Holy Spirit that can make you love someone unconditionally. Read the rest of this entry
Head-Sheep
Dan.6: 24 Then the king gave orders to arrest the men who had maliciously accused Daniel. He had them thrown into the lions’ den, along with their wives and children. The lions leaped on them and tore them apart before they even hit the floor of the den.” [with emphasis]
We have to be very careful about our alliances and the choices we make. It was the fathers alone that took a stand against God and against Daniel. It was the fathers alone that took a step but when the punishment came, their wives and children were thrown into the lion’s den with them. Women, if your husband is behaving like a vagabond, it is in your best interest to ensure that he does not follow others to plot against or formulate negative reports about “Daniel”. Some people are “Daniels”; when other people come against them, those people and their families are destined for the lion’s den. Women, you be the “Abigail” [1 Sam.25] and warn him against that course of action. If he insists on going against Daniel, go behind him and settle with Daniel, David, or king Dairus as the case may be. That was what Abigail did and her life was preserved.
Secondly, it shows the power of headship. Your husband is your head, which means that it is in your own interest that it is well with him. If it is well with him, it is well you. If you think that it will be well you if it is not well with him, you are deceiving yourself. I know this is very sobering for women. But it is also deeply instructive for men because it puts you face to face with the responsibility of headship. Now to the single ladies, be careful who you marry because as his destiny goes so will yours. I am sure every woman, single or married, wants to know what she can do in such situations. The main thing you can do if are already married is to go on your knees and pray. If you are not yet married, then you are better positioned – be watchful! If love is the only thing you are basing your decision to marry him on, love alone is not enough.
It is so sobering that the man alone took a step and his entire family paid for it. That was how it worked particularly in those times because the king knows that if he kills the father alone, the son can rise up to take revenge. So, in a bid to protect himself, the king would rather wipe out the entire family. It is a very huge thing. So, ladies, that is why you have to pray for your husband. Pray like your life depends on it because it actually does. Pray that it will be well with him. It is only a foolish woman that would think it is a case of, “I told you so!” Guess what? It is going to affect both of you; that is how it works. In marriage, it is, rise together or fall together. I pray that you would keep rising in Jesus Name. As a man, the best thing is to follow Jesus’s leading – be His sheep!
Prayer: Father, I pray that my spouse will not judge by the sight of the eyes or the hearing of the ears, but that he will be led and ruled by Your Spirit alone, in Jesus Name. Amen!
The Question
John 21:17 (GW) “Jesus asked him a third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt sad because Jesus had asked him a third time, “Do you love me?” So, Peter said to him, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.” Jesus told him, “Feed my sheep.”
It’s not about the love for the cause or the movement. Jesus did not ask Peter, “Do you love the cause or the movement?” Nor is it about the love for the church- Jesus did not say, “Peter, do you love the church, the lambs, the sheep”? Read the rest of this entry
Grow Up!
1 Cor.13:11 (TLB) “It’s like this: when I was a child I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child does. But when I became a man my thoughts grew far beyond those of my childhood, and now I have put away the childish things.”
A lot of Christians want to remain infants and that is a problem. For some, as soon as they feel they are no longer infants, then it means something is wrong. God wants you to grow up. A spiritual infant for instance is mostly concerned about ‘me’. Read the rest of this entry
Growth Stages
1 Cor.13:11 (TLB) “It’s like this: when I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child does. But when I became a man my thoughts grew far beyond those of my childhood, and now I have put away the childish things.”
God is not only with you, God is for you; so you do not have to wait for things to be perfect before you are happy. You do not have to be perfect for God to love you, but God loves you too much to leave you the way you are. Read the rest of this entry
Yes or No?
Matt.5:36 (JB) “All you need to say is `Yes’ if you mean yes, or `No’ if you mean no; anything more than this comes from the evil one.”
Meekness is not weakness! God has not designed you to be a wimp or a doormat. He wants you to have conviction! How do you handle situations at work or in your business that put a question mark on your integrity or your stand in God? What do you do when your customer says for the relationship to continue, you have to adjust your books? Read the rest of this entry
Detox
Rom.12:2 (Philips) “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould, but let God re-mould your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the plan of God for you is good, meets all his demands and moves towards the goal of true maturity.”
Prov.22:10 (LB) “Throw out the mocker and you will be rid of tension, fighting & quarrels.” When you get rid of the gossip –the toxic person, you will be shocked how healthy your organization will become. In fact, you are sending a statement out to those people that are not gossips and the people that have a propensity to gossip. Read the rest of this entry
