TODAY’S DEVOTION (THURSDAY 28TH DECEMBER 2023)
“This was the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:23-24 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 362ND DAY OF OUR YEAR OF SIGNS AND WONDERS.
Glory be to the LORD God, today is part of the final days of year 2023. There was a first day, now we are in the final days. God is faithful, just and kind. He has been our helper all the year.
We are alive today, not because we are better than those who died during the year. Each person has their end, maybe those ones came to their end. Ours is still ahead of us. God’s mercy is responsible for that.
You see, final days are very important days. They are days of looking inward and considering things you will not normally consider. That is why our devotion today is unique.
Let’s begin with some questions of life! Can a man really measure God’s goodness? Can we really fathom what His Mercies accomplishes even in the life of the worst terrorist on earth on daily bases?
Can our finite minds comprehend what an infinite God does to demonstrate His love towards us on daily bases? Friend, there are things God does in and for us on daily bases that we know nothing about.
One day Dr. Caroline Leaf, one of the Daughters of the KING in the medical field, blew my mind open when she said, “God gives us 300 million new cells every day” to renew our lives. She said this happens every night.
Come to think of it, if you are alive today, it is the release of those new cells every night that has kept you alive.
For the 362 days of this year alone, God has created 300 million cells 362 times for each of us; that is for every man, every woman, every child, no matter their faith, trade or religion. Even for Satan worshipers, hoping they will turn from their ways and serve Him.
This is amazing. Truly, no one can accurately measure God’s goodness. His mercies and goodness make it possible for everyone, either good or bad, to wake up each morning with new cells.
THAT EXPLAINS WHY THE BIBLE SAYS GOD’S MERCIES ARE NEW EVERY MORNING.
Last night you slept with a number of cells. But this morning you woke up with 300 million new cells in your body. Hallelujah! Indeed, His mercies are new every morning.
Friend, you cannot afford to turn your back on this God. He is so gracious that our mortal minds cannot fathom. That is why the devil deceive many to believe He either do not exist or do not care about them.
Seeds of ingratitude to God, are planted daily in the hearts of mankind by the evil one, so that people will not be grateful for His marvelous deeds, or come to Him for salvation and sanctification.
Now, let us go deeper to some truths that will help us maximize God’s mercy and allow it produce what God intends in our lives.
There is a law that governs the release of God’s goodness and mercy in our lives. When that law is operational, it renders the activities of the devil ineffective in our lives.
The law is seen in the parable of the vineyard in “Isaiah 5:1-7” and was reiterated by Jesus in one of His parables. It simply states that, “God’s mercy is an investment that expects the fear of God as proceed.”
Meaning, if God show us mercy over time, and pour His goodness on daily bases into our lives, it is primarily to exhume, “the fear of the LORD” from our lives. If that did not happen after a long time, things will go bad with us.
If God creates fresh cells in me while asleep – 300 million of them – why should I wake up and proceed to do wicked things in return?
Why should I use His mercy as an incentive to live in sin and ungodliness? Why should I not lift up my voice to glorify Him as soon as I wake up, thanking Him for a new day?
May God plant fresh thoughts of gratitude in our heart this morning!
Men who are always grateful to God, get great things from Him. But those who are ungrateful, get nothing great from Him. Their lives are always on the average.
Understand that Satan will not let you see the works of God’s goodness and mercies in your life, because they will make you grateful, and he fears a grateful heart.
A GRATEFUL HEART GENERATES SO MUCH POWER IN THE SPIRIT REALM.
Let me share another truth on the necessity of having a grateful heart. I believe this truth will be a guide for someone during the coming year or as we cross over to the next.
In Judges 1:7, when the key leaders after Joshua were dead, the nation of Israel was left with no directive on how to invade the rest of the land and take possession of what the LORD had given them.
They went to God in prayer to seek directives.
One of the things they enquired of the LORD about was strategy for successful invasion; they were concerned on who should go first against the enemy, and God replied, “Judah should go first”.
Judah means praise. God was simply teaching us that sometimes, prayer should not go first when we are dealing with the enemy, except prayer to fellowship with God, or make strategic inquiries of Him. Praise should go first.
When the enemy come against us, like Jehoshaphat did, we should lift up our voices to praise the LORD. When there are bills to pay and we are in need of a miracle, we should lift up our voice and praise the GOD who make ways where there is no way.
When there is a health problem that we are battling with, we should lift up our voices in songs to praise He who can heal any diseases. We should let Judah go first, not complaints.
When sorcerers conspire against you, or liars are everywhere spreading lies about you, lift up your voice in praise to He who frustrate the tokens of liars and make diviners mad.
When things go bad with you, lift up your voice and praise He who can make all things new, and restore every detail of your life. Declare what God has done in the past in songs, and you will see what He can do in your lives in the present, with power.
The Bible says, “let the high praises of God be upon your mouth, and a two-edged sword in your hands.” High praise to God will put swords in our hands to use against the enemy.
THE LESSON HERE IS, IT IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND WHEN PRAISE SHOULD GO FIRST WHEN WE ARE DEALING WITH THE ENEMY.
Now, for praise to go first, it is also important to understand that you will never be able to praise God effectively, if you do not have a grateful heart.
Praise is something that can only be done effectively with a grateful heart. That brings us again to the importance of having a grateful heart this season of the year (and in all seasons of life).
In other words, only a grateful heart can praise God effectively. So, in effect, when God said to Israel, let Judah go first, He was also saying, “Let people with grateful hearts go first, and you will generate so much power that will put the enemy to flight” Hallelujah!
A grateful heart makes God fearful in praises. It makes God do wonders on the face of the earth through its praise! That is how it generates power in the spirit realm.
You can carry a supernatural power house by cultivating a grateful heart wherever you go. If you will not allow Seeds of ingratitude to breed in your heart, you will be generating supernatural power wherever you go.
Now, there is one major season Satan and men come to plant seeds of ingratitude in us. It is called, “Our Season of pain.” That is why the Bible says, in everything, we should rejoice and give God thanks, because it is the will of God concerning us in Christ Jesus!
Though it’s difficult, but one way to do this is by taking your focus off the bad things and fixing it on what God may have done!
In my opinion, the early Church was kept powerful by keeping to this principle. That was why Paul and Silas praised God in the midst of very unpleasant circumstances. And their praise generated so much power in the Spirit realm that the natural realm gave way; the prison doors, chains, and etc. broke into pieces.
THE RESULT WAS THE SALVATION OF LOST SOULS AND THEIR FREEDOM.
No demon in hell, or oppressive man on earth, can hold a grateful heart in any kind of prison for too long. It will unleash a kind of Praise to God that will generate power on earth, break the prison doors, and turn things around.
We can now understand why the prophet Habakkuk refused to allow his circumstances to dictate his heart flow towards God.
He wrote saying, “Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; though the labor of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food; though the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls — Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. (Habakkuk 3:17-18 NKJV)”
As you pass through the last moments of year 2023, make this principle one of your master keys for turning God loose in 2024, and you will be most blessed!
Step into 2024 in High Praise to God. Ride on the wings of God’s power into 2024. Do not just walk into it.
Forget about what good you did not see this year and fix your eyes on the good you saw. If you multiply 300 Million cells by the 362 days you have already seen in 2023, you will be amazed at what the LORD did (sometimes even while you are spending the night in sin) just to keep you alive.
If He has dealt with us according to our sins, then no cell will have been created in us; and that would have meant death.
LET THESE WORDS FROM THE SWEET PSALMIST OF ISRAEL BE YOUR FOCUS THIS DAY AS YOU MAKE UP YOUR MIND TO LEAD A GRATEFUL LIFE IN 2024!
“He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities.
For as the heavens are high above the earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
As a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust. As for man, his days are like grass; As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.” Ps 103:9-15 NKJV