TODAY’S DEVOTION (WEDNESDAY 10TH JULY 2024)
“Now, therefore,” says the LORD, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”
So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm.
Who knows if He will turn and relent, And leave a blessing behind Him—A grain offering and a drink offering For the LORD your God? Blow the trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, Call a sacred assembly; Joel 2:12-15 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 191ST DAY OF OUR YEAR OF IMPACT.
The mercies of the LORD are from everlasting to everlasting. His faithfulness reaches to the skies. His compassion is beyond comprehension. If both where not in existence, there would have been no soul surviving on the face of the earth.
The earth seems full of people who devise evil. Criminalities everywhere. Rape, and destruction in some places. Terrorism in others.
So many chaotic and confusing things happen daily. The earth has not had a time of peace without war or health without diseases for a hundred years stretch since the fall of man. Today is Ukraine and Russia, tomorrow you will hear of another. It was covid-19 yesterday, while the world was yet to recover, another called omicron emerged. Reports has it that people are responsible for all these.
But it is important to note that whatever people are devising is not as dangerous as what we are devising in our hearts, as individuals.
What someone devises could affect another but will not always seal their eternal damnation or send one to hell. For instance, someone may devise or invent a plan to rape another or commit adultery, that will not affect your eternal destiny because you are not the one who raped or committed the adultery. It may not even affect the eternal destiny of the person raped.
Everyone perishes eternally for what they devise in their hearts individually. It is important that we note that and do what the Bible says we should do; keep our hearts with all diligence and make sure we do not allow ourselves to engage in devising evil.
Today we want to take another look on prayer. It is important to understand that devising evil has a way of quenching the Holy Spirit in our hearts, and shutting down our prayer lives completely.
The reason is, true prayer is done with the heart. The mouth only says what the heart is saying.
When it comes to true prayer, the Holy Spirit is the one who brings us to the realm. He does that using our hearts. Trying to pray without the Holy Spirit will result in either the prayer of the hypocrite, the prayer of the heathen, the prayer of the ignorant, or carnal prayers.
THE GREATEST MINISTRY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN OUR LIVES IS IN THE AREA OF PRAYER.
We call it the prayer ministry of the Holy Spirit, which is to help us engage in true prayers. On this special ministry, the Bible says;
“Likewise, the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God”. Romans 8:26-27 NKJV
If He is not there, this will not be possible. In other words, this special prayer ministry of the Holy Spirit will be quenched in our lives if He is not there. Yes, if His fire is not there, we may pray but the prayer will just be a form of godliness without power.
So, whatever will quench the Spirit of GOD must be avoided and resisted by all means. Devising evil in our hearts will quench Him. To devise is to invent, to create, or plan. Most times our hearts create evil and invent sinful things that lead us astray. The Bible says;
“Do they not go astray who devise evil? But mercy and truth belong to those who devise good.” Proverbs 14:22 NKJV
When we allow our hearts or minds to devise, create or plan sinful and evil things, we begin to take sinful steps and begin to go astray from the ways of the LORD.
But if we allow our hearts and minds to devise, invent, or create good thing through meditation in the word of GOD, we will experience revelation, mercy and truth. We will allow the fire of the Holy Spirit to burn within us and keep our prayer lives aflame.
Wherever there is Bible Truth, the fire of the Spirit burns and empowers sanctification and prayer. Wherever there is none, you will never find such moves. The message here is to make sure our hearts do not devise evil so that the works of the Spirit will not be quenched.
If the works of the Spirit in our lives is quenched, our souls will plunge into darkness. We will not be able to engage in true prayer.
TRUE PRAYER IS RIGHTEOUS PRAYER.
Righteous prayers are result oriented. They do not go unanswered. Satan will never hinder you from going on fasting and prayer, so long as the prayer and fasting will not happen in the realm of righteous prayers.
In fact, Satan has led prayer movements in Church today. One of the recent ones is the prayer caravans we see in some nations. That is why they do not result in righteous shift in nations. They only result in economic shifts in the life of those who organize the prayers.
Righteous prayer is a prayer the Bible made clear that GOD does not ignore.
Friend, when it comes to prayer matters in God’s kingdom, it is important to be schooled in prayers that GOD has no History of ignoring. It is important to be schooled in the many aspects of righteous prayers.
For instance, so long as we are still in this wicked and sinful world, it is important to know the kind of prayers or the aspect of righteous prayers that strike the cords of God’s love, mercy, and compassion.
One of it is the prayer of a sinner who is genuinely sorrowing for his or her sins. It is called the “Prayer of repentance.”
Yes, so long as sin still lives in us, it is important to know about this kind of prayers and learn to pray them in time of spiritual need, or learn how to guide others pray them. We must know the principles that governs the prayer of repentance.
Everyone must understand that, if there was no room for prayers of repentance in the Throne Room of GOD, none of us would have been alive today. Our sins and wickedness would have consumed us.
If there was no room for the prayers of repentance, then the death of Jesus on the cross would have been in vain.
It is the prayer of repentance that opens the portal of God’s mercies on sinful and perishing souls. It is the prayer of repentance that moves us from being practicing sinners to ex sinners. They make us Heaven worthy. They bring the power of the blood of Jesus upon us and cleanses us from all sins.
IN FACT, PETER SAID, THEY ARE A GATEWAY TO TIMES OF REFRESHING FROM THE LORD! HEAR HIM;
“Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,” Acts 8:19 NKJV
Most times when our hearts devise evil, we become out of the reach of God’s refreshing presence, making it difficult to pray. But when we begin to search ourselves and pray prayers of repentance, restoration begins to come.
I don’t know about any other person, but personally, either I have sinned or not, I like starting my prayers with deep repentance from the sin that lives in me, and sins I may have fallen into or lived in. I know very well that sin is living in every one of us, but not everyone is living in sin.
So, I like starting my prayers with deep repentance. It has always helped in bringing a fresh presence of GOD upon me. I don’t know if it’s because of my Catholic background, but it has been very helpful.
There is nothing that opens the gates of God’s amazing presence upon us like the prayer of repentance or prayers in repentance. A portion of Our devotional text says;
“Now, therefore,” says the LORD, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.” Joel 2:12 NKJV
You cannot engage in prayers of repentance without turning to the LORD with all your hearts, with fasting, with weeping and with morning. Anything you call prayers of repentance that lack all that is false.
Personally, it is through the prayers of repentance I learned how to turn to the LORD with all my heart, and genuine prayers only begins after you have turned to the LORD with all your heart.
Sometimes you turn with fasting, with weeping and morning, depending on the gravity of your sin, or the sincerity or carnality of your heart. But in all and all, you must understand that no prayer of repentance is a mouth thing.
GENUINE PRAYERS OF REPENTANCE ARE A HEART THING, AND YOU WILL KNOW WHY SHORTLY.
I grew up to learn that if prayers of repentance precede other prayers, you will always pray your prayers under an atmosphere of GOD’s mercies. We must therefore understand the principles that govern prayers of repentance.
The first is, genuine prayers of repentance are not stereo typed. In other words, you do not teach a sinner how to pray the prayer of repentance. It is like not teaching someone how to cry when they are in pain. If there is pain, they will cry. In the same way, if there is repentance, and sorrowing for sin committed, there will be prayers of repentance.
That is why another portion of our devotional text says;
“ So, rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm.” Joel 2:13 NKJV
In these days of hypocrisy and pretense, we must understand that none of us can fool GOD with tears. Our prayers of repentance must not be a show of emotions without genuine repentance at heart.
On the threshing floor of repentance, it is not the tears of the eyes that matters but the tears of the heart. If the tears of the eyes are not a reflection of the tears of the heart, it tantamount to fooling GOD. Like I said, we can fool people but we cannot fool GOD!
The principle says “if our repentance is genuine, it will flow out in our mouths as prayers of a broken and contrite heart.” And the Bible says,
“For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, you will not despise.” Psalm 51:16-17 NKJV
It is very important to understand that there are seasons God will never demand sacrifice from you.
Sadly, money minded preachers demand sacrifice from people irrespective of the season, but in the kingdom of God, there are season that the LORD will never demand sacrifice from us.
IN FACT, THERE ARE ABOUT SEVEN SEASONS GOD WILL NOT DEMAND SACRIFICE FROM US.
One of the seasons is when we need to go to the threshing floor of repentance to sorrow for our sins and repent genuinely from wicked deeds. If you go offering God sacrifices during that season, you are offering the sacrifice of fools. Only the preacher who receive your money will celebrate you, not God.
Our devotional text presents an invitation to the threshing floor. Go through it again!
When God is inviting you to the Threshing floor for repentance, that is not the time to offer sacrifices because it will be unacceptable. The sacrifice that is required on the Threshing floor is a broken and a contrite spirit.
That is what God will not despise; every other thing we do will be despised.
In other words, when God needs us at the Threshing floor, that is not the time to preach, serve in Church or do anything for Him. Whatever we do, may be acceptable to the church but will not be acceptable to GOD.
In a church world were everyone is eager to serve, either they are living in sin or not, we must understand these truths so that we will not perish like the sons of Aaron who offered strange fire before the LORD!
If God needs us at the Threshing floor and we go serving, we would be offering strange fire before the LORD!
Concerning the sons of Aaron, the Bible says;
“Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them. So, fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.
And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the LORD spoke, saying: ‘By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; and before all the people I must be glorified.’ ” So, Aaron held his peace. Leviticus 10:1-3 NKJV
So many of us are offering strange fires before the LORD, that is why strange things are happening to us and our lives are not blessed despite our serving in Church.
Serving God can deliver us from demons and cleanse our lives completely, bringing in the prosperity of the righteous, but if we serve when God needs us at the Threshing floor of repentance, we reverse the blessing of serving and they become a curse in our lives.
That is why you must not allow a preacher to mislead you on these matters.
Most preachers will urge you to serve despite how you are living. Some will even allow you to retreat only for few days and return, that is very destructive. You must be sincere to yourself and God, and stay away from serving when you need to be long enough at the Threshing floor.
The truth remains, when our ways are not clean before God, we should quit serving and go to the Threshing floor. If our pastors insist that we must serve, we should leave the Church because we are being set up by their insistence to destroy ourselves.
We must understand that When Heaven needs us at the Threshing floor, that is not time to be on stage serving. We must be at the threshing floor, repenting and sorrowing for our sins until times of refreshing comes.
There is so much to share on this but let me stop here. I believe the LORD has spoken to us.
MAKE THIS SCRIPTURE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR THE DAY!
“Blow the trumpet in Zion, consecrate a fast, Call a sacred assembly;
Gather the people, Sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and nursing babes; Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber, And the bride from her dressing room.Let the priests, who minister to the LORD, Weep between the porch and the altar; Let them say, “Spare Your people, O LORD, and do not give Your heritage to reproach, That the nations should rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’ ” Joel 2:15-17 NKJV