TODAY’S DEVOTION (SATURDAY 28TH JANUARY 2023)
“Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem.
And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah had done.
He sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God; and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper.
Now he went out and made war against the Philistines, and broke down the wall of Gath, the wall of Jabneh, and the wall of Ashdod; and he built cities around Ashdod and among the Philistines.
God helped him against the Philistines, against the Arabians who lived in Gur Baal, and against the Meunites.
Also the Ammonites brought tribute to Uzziah. His fame spread as far as the entrance of Egypt, for he became exceedingly strong.” 2 Chronicles 26:3-8 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 28TH DAY OF OUR YEAR OF SIGNS AND WONDERS!
This is the Day the LORD has made, we shall rejoice and be glad in it. Day unto day we have been hearing God’s insightful speeches sounding in our spirits through this platform, and night unto night they have been resounding in our hearts. Indeed, He has been faithful.
The lines and revelations of the LORD’s faithfulness are all over our lives. His vision is to set in us a Tabernacle for Himself, the Sun of righteousness.
The fulfillment of the vision usually begins when we surrender our lives to Him, to be LORD and Savior over them. Then continues, through our decisions to live in His will, and walk in His ways as Temples for Him in the Spirit, until our days on earth are fulfilled.
Your desire as a Christian should be to actualize this vision of the LORD. But understand that there will always be the need for a good apostolic church and leader in our lives to help us actualize it.
If we do not have one, we will be living as dilapidated spiritual temples on earth, even as believers because believing is not enough, thereby becoming sinful in our ways, depraved in our morals, and lacking the REST the LORD promised those who come to Him. Thereby becoming troubled on all sides, finding comfort only as users of oil, water, salt, and all kinds of things that charlatans sell to those who go to them for prayers.
If we keep living our lives as dilapidated spiritual temples, we will never be able to experience the LORD as our Rock in times of trouble. He will never be exalted in our lives when the need arises. He will not even avenge for us when we are unjustly treated the way He did for our fathers.
We will not be lifted above our enemies. Hence, becoming a laughing stock.
Let me balance this up; there are two seasons when people can be a laughing stock in the race, the first is when they live as dilapidated spiritual temples, and the second when they begin the journey to change that kind of spiritual life and become well-constructed magnificent spiritual temples of the Sun of righteousness on earth.
The former is a consequence of not living as the LORD desires, the latter is a price we pay for living as the LORD desires. It is the latter that brings the blessing at the end not the former.
We have been on a 31-day journey of faith with the Cry of the Spirit on visionary living. Like we stated in one of the days, God will not be talking to us about visionary living if there is nothing great coming. I believe the LORD has prepared something great and beautiful for us.
When God prepares something great or beautiful for you, and see that you will miss it if you keep walking on the paths you find yourself, He will bring word on visionary living to you so that you can depart from those paths, and step into the paths that you need to walk in, in order to experience what He has prepared.
Lately, especially since we started the final descend to the end of the journey, He has been helping us to understand the laws that govern visionary living. We have seen so many beautiful laws. We are on the law of the sycamore Tree. Yesterday, we discovered that this law was used by Zacchaeus to deal with the short stature problem he had when he wanted to see Jesus.
We also discovered that, in a bid to know the LORD, see into His plans for our lives and lead visionary lives, there will always be a shortness in spiritual, mental and sometimes financial stature to deal with.
God would have to bring us to men and women of greater stature in those areas, and use our beautiful attitudes towards them to touch their hearts to let us ascend to their shoulders. Until that happens we may be struggling in life.
People do not realize how much they need others in their lives hence putting on terrible attitudes in life.
From our devotional text, a beautiful story about one of Israel’s youngest king, it’s clear that there are marvelous helps of God we will never see until we key into the law of the sycamore tree; until we find taller shoulders to climb on. The life and times of Uzziah in the Bible is one beautiful piece of story that will speak to us today on this law.
The full devotional text says;
“Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem.
And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah had done.
He sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God; and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper.
Now he went out and made war against the Philistines, and broke down the wall of Gath, the wall of Jabneh, and the wall of Ashdod; and he built cities around Ashdod and among the Philistines.
God helped him against the Philistines, against the Arabians who lived in Gur Baal, and against the Meunites.
Also the Ammonites brought tribute to Uzziah. His fame spread as far as the entrance of Egypt, for he became exceedingly strong.” 2 Chronicles 26:3-8 NKJV
God applied the law of the sycamore Tree on Uzziah. His own short stature was created by age. He was too young to lead but had to lead.
Your own may have been created by lack of education, parents dying young, or you having no father. It might also have been created by you not having a sound Church to attend when you first gave your life to Christ, or other circumstances of life. No matter what created your shortness of stature, you will need one tall shoulder to climb on to enhance your height in that area of life, and experience the marvelous helps you need from God in life.
Uzziah had one tall tree in his life called “Zechariah.” The man had understanding in the visions of God for his age and times. That was the shoulder he humbled himself to climb on, to enhance his height in destiny and experience all the marvelous helps he got from the LORD. The Bible says,
“He sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God; and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper.” 2 Chronicles 26:5 NKJV
Who helped him seek the LORD? The tree whose shoulder he climbed.
Had Uzziah developed attitudes like many youths do today, or said “I do not Need anyone to succeed in life, I only need God” like some misguide people talk, he would not have experienced the prosperity he experienced from the LORD because he would have despised the tree the LORD brought his way to use in eliminating his destiny deficiency.
Friend, your success and progress in life is just a tree away!
If you can find a Zechariah like Uzziah found, and climb on his shoulder by cultivating the right attitudes of submission, loyalty, service, purity of heart and spirit, and great humility, you will be able to seek the LORD and begin to experience His marvelous help as never before.
God will begin to make you prosper in life.
Indeed, your success is just a tree away! Such destiny trees come in different forms. They could come as resident pastors, apostles, business men and women, spiritual or political leaders, depending on your field of kingdom assignment, or towering visionary men like Zechariah.
Irrespective of how they come, you will not need to worship them to get access to their shoulders. That is what happens among corrupt destiny trees or leaders and their protégés or spiritual sons.
If you ask me I will say the only Tree you need to worship to climb on is the Tree of Life Himself, Jesus Christ. Then He will place you on the shoulders of men and women who are His branches, the way He placed Uzziah (people you will not need to scheme or offer some worship to in other to access their shoulders) to make you prosper. Such men will be like trees to you.
That means, to find these men you must find the LORD first, the Tree of life Himself, and take your place in Him. You must find Him, and then find out what He wants to do with your life, and began to die daily for it. If you do, He will bring you to the tree men you need to enhance your destiny height.
You will not have to look at someone towering leader out there, and begin to court them to be your tree men or women. No! The LORD will orchestrate everything the way He did for Elisha. You will only need to be sensitive enough to recognize the person when he or she comes your way.
They could come in through a book that blessed you, a video message or even a you tube channel that ministered to you, a church meeting or whatever, when the LORD make them reach you, you must recognize them. You must be sensitive.
Once you are sensitive to reach out to them, then cultivate the right attitude towards them, you will find yourself on their shoulder.
When the LORD place you on their shoulder, and you maintain the same right attitudes, you will begin to experience His marvelous helps. That is the bit we can share on the law of the sycamore tree.
LET THIS BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR US TODAY!
“Moreover Uzziah had an army of fighting men who went out to war by companies, according to the number on their roll as prepared by Jeiel the scribe and Maaseiah the officer, under the hand of Hananiah, one of the king’s captains.
The total number of [e]chief officers of the mighty men of valor was two thousand six hundred. And under their authority was an army of three hundred and seven thousand five hundred, that made war with mighty power, to help the king against the enemy.
Then Uzziah prepared for them, for the entire army, shields, spears, helmets, body armor, bows, and slings to cast stones.
And he made devices in Jerusalem, invented by skillful men, to be on the towers and the corners, to shoot arrows and large stones. So his fame spread far and wide, for he was marvelously helped till he became strong.” 2 Chronicles 26:11-15 NKJV