He.
Isaiah 43:16-21
Contemporary English Version (CEV)
16 I am the one who cut a path
through the mighty ocean.
17 I sent an army to chase you
with chariots and horses;
now they lie dead,
unable to move.
They are like an oil lamp
with the flame snuffed out.
Forget the Past
The Lord said:
18 Forget what happened long ago!
Don’t think about the past.
19 I am creating something new.
There it is! Do you see it?
I have put roads in deserts,
streams in thirsty lands.
20 Every wild animal honors me,
even jackals and owls.
I provide water in deserts—
streams in thirsty lands
for my chosen people.
21 I made them my own nation,
so they would praise me.
When life gets difficult…
1 Peter 4:13
The Message (MSG)
Deeep!
Hebrews 6:4-8
The Message (MSG)
4-8Once people have seen the light, gotten a taste of heaven and been part of the work of the Holy Spirit, once they’ve personally experienced the sheer goodness of God’s Word and the powers breaking in on us—if then they turn their backs on it, washing their hands of the whole thing, well, they can’t start over as if nothing happened. That’s impossible. Why, they’ve re-crucified Jesus! They’ve repudiated him in public! Parched ground that soaks up the rain and then produces an abundance of carrots and corn for its gardener gets God’s “Well done!” But if it produces weeds and thistles, it’s more likely to get cussed out. Fields like that are burned, not harvested.
John 14:27 Amplified Bible (AMP)
You Can Change Your Habits · Monday, March 26th
According to his usual habit Paul went to the synagogue. There during three Sabbaths he held discussions with the people… (Acts 17:2 GNB).
There’re some people who may be unhappy with how their lives have turned because of bad habits they had practised through the years. There’s no need for you to be frustrated with yourself or with life because of certain unwholesome habits you’ve been battling with. The first thing to realize is that those habits didn’t form overnight. Habits are simply repeated actions that condition behaviour. If you’d replace that old habit with a better one, you’d get rid of the one you don’t like.
A habit is an established pattern of behaviour acquired through frequent repetition. Anything you do consistently and repeatedly over time becomes a habit. At first, you consciously or unconsciously create your habits, but eventually your habits will form your character, and influence your behavioural pattern, making you the product of your habits.
The Bible says sin shall not have dominion over you (Romans 6:14); so refuse to allow any negative habit control you. If for example, someone has formed a habit of lying, what such a person needs is to decide to consciously tell the truth. The beautiful thing is it wouldn’t take long before such a negative habit is completely eradicated. It has been said that anything you do six times consecutively, in the same way, will get into your personality and shape your behavioural pattern.
If for example, you desire to cultivate a habit of waking up to pray every day by six am, if you can consistently do it six days of the week in a row, it’ll become a habit for you! Whatever godly habit you want to imbibe is possible; all it takes is the discipline and stick-ability.
Prayer
Dear Father, I thank you for giving me the liberty and ability to live to my highest potentials in Christ! Through the power of the Holy Spirit and influence of God’s Word, my character is being formed to be in sync with God’s perfect will and eternal purpose for my life, in Jesus’ Name. Amen
f u r t h e r s t u d y: Hebrews 10:25 Good News Bible; James 1:21-22 GNB
Author: Rev. Chris Oyakhilome
Restrain Yourself!
Proverbs 23 (MSG)
1-3 When you go out to dinner with an influential person, mind your manners:
Don’t gobble your food,
don’t talk with your mouth full.
And don’t stuff yourself;
bridle your appetite.
4-5 Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich;
restrain yourself!
Riches disappear in the blink of an eye;
wealth sprouts wings
and flies off into the wild blue yonder.
6-8 Don’t accept a meal from a tightwad;
don’t expect anything special.
He’ll be as stingy with you as he is with himself;
he’ll say, “Eat! Drink!” but won’t mean a word of it.
His miserly serving will turn your stomach
when you realize the meal’s a sham.
9 Don’t bother talking sense to fools;
they’ll only poke fun at your words.
10-11 Don’t stealthily move back the boundary lines
or cheat orphans out of their property,
For they have a powerful Advocate
who will go to bat for them.
12 Give yourselves to disciplined instruction;
open your ears to tested knowledge.
13-14 Don’t be afraid to correct your young ones;
a spanking won’t kill them.
A good spanking, in fact, might save them
from something worse than death.
15-16 Dear child, if you become wise,
I’ll be one happy parent.
My heart will dance and sing
to the tuneful truth you’ll speak.
17-18 Don’t for a minute envy careless rebels;
soak yourself in the Fear-of-God—
That’s where your future lies.
Then you won’t be left with an armload of nothing.
19-21 Oh listen, dear child—become wise;
point your life in the right direction.
Don’t drink too much wine and get drunk;
don’t eat too much food and get fat.
Drunks and gluttons will end up on skid row,
in a stupor and dressed in rags.
Buy Wisdom, Education, Insight
22-25 Listen with respect to the father who raised you,
and when your mother grows old, don’t neglect her.
Buy truth—don’t sell it for love or money;
buy wisdom, buy education, buy insight.
Parents rejoice when their children turn out well;
wise children become proud parents.
So make your father happy!
Make your mother proud!
26 Dear child, I want your full attention;
please do what I show you.
27-28 A whore is a bottomless pit;
a loose woman can get you in deep trouble fast.
She’ll take you for all you’ve got;
she’s worse than a pack of thieves.
29-35 Who are the people who are always crying the blues?
Who do you know who reeks of self-pity?
Who keeps getting beat up for no reason at all?
Whose eyes are bleary and bloodshot?
It’s those who spend the night with a bottle,
for whom drinking is serious business.
Don’t judge wine by its label,
or its bouquet, or its full-bodied flavor.
Judge it rather by the hangover it leaves you with—
the splitting headache, the queasy stomach.
Do you really prefer seeing double,
with your speech all slurred,
Reeling and seasick,
drunk as a sailor?
“They hit me,” you’ll say, “but it didn’t hurt;
they beat on me, but I didn’t feel a thing.
When I’m sober enough to manage it,
bring me another drink!”
Bible verse of the Day!
Matthew 6:30-33
The Message (MSG)
30-33“If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.
Bible Verse of the Day!
15-18“Can a mother forget the infant at her breast, Isaiah 49:16 (The Message)
walk away from the baby she bore?
But even if mothers forget,
I’d never forget you—never.
Look, I’ve written your names on the backs of my hands.
Bible Verse of the Day!
Psalm 91 (Message translation)
You who sit down in the High God’s presence, spend the night in Shaddai’s shadow,
Say this: “God, you’re my refuge.
I trust in you and I’m safe!”
That’s right—he rescues you from hidden traps,
shields you from deadly hazards.
His huge outstretched arms protect you—
under them you’re perfectly safe;
his arms fend off all harm.
Fear nothing—not wild wolves in the night,
not flying arrows in the day,
Not disease that prowls through the darkness,
not disaster that erupts at high noon.
Even though others succumb all around,
drop like flies right and left,
no harm will even graze you.
You’ll stand untouched, watch it all from a distance,
watch the wicked turn into corpses.
Yes, because God’s your refuge,
the High God your very own home,
Evil can’t get close to you,
harm can’t get through the door.
He ordered his angels
to guard you wherever you go.
If you stumble, they’ll catch you;
their job is to keep you from falling.
You’ll walk unharmed among lions and snakes,
and kick young lions and serpents from the path.
14-16 ”If you’ll hold on to me for dear life,” says God,
”I’ll get you out of any trouble.
I’ll give you the best of care
if you’ll only get to know and trust me.
Call me and I’ll answer, be at your side in bad times;
I’ll rescue you, then throw you a party.
I’ll give you a long life,
give you a long drink of salvation!”
Bible Verse of the Day!
James 5:16-18 (The Message)
Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed.The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. Elijah, for instance, human just like us, prayed hard that it wouldn’t rain, and it didn’t—not a drop for three and a half years. Then he prayed that it would rain, and it did. The showers came and everything started growing again.
Bible Verse of the Day!
Mark 9:23 (The Message)
23Jesus said, “If? There are no ‘ifs’ among believers. Anything can happen.”
GOD..
…..I’ve also concluded that whatever God does, that’s the way it’s going to be, always. No addition, no subtraction. God’s done it and that’s it. That’s so we’ll quit asking questions and simply worship in holy fear. -Ecclesiastes 3:14 (MSG)
Awesome!
The revelation of God is whole,
and pulls our lives together.
The signposts of God are clear
and point out the right road.
The life-maps of God are right,
showing the way to joy.
The directions of God are plain
and easy on the eyes.
God’s reputation is twenty-four-carat gold,
with a lifetime guarantee.
The decisions of God are accurate
down to the nth degree.
- Psalm 19:7-9 (MSG)
