TODAY’S DEVOTION (Monday 10TH August 2020)
“But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.” Matthew 7:26-27 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 221ST DAY OF OUR YEAR OF REJOICING
One major thing I learned early in life is the perfection and beauty that comes out of a man’s life when planted in the center of God’s will. Though I grew up knowing this I ended up doing things outside God’s will hence having terrible burns in life.
However, the experiences taught me that it is wise to be in divine will, foolish not to be, and a disaster to be in what looks like it but not really it. I hope you understand me. If you don’t, read the statement again.
A lot of people are in what look like divine will but not really it. I call it a disaster because they will never come out of it. No matter what you preach or teach they will never listen. Their beliefs placed them in a precarious state. That is why I consider it a disaster.
Someone outside God’s will, can easily recognize it if he or she encounters truth, but someone in what looks like it will argue with you and put up a damnable defense against the reality of his or her error. He or she will never listen because it is the spirit of deception that places people in such boxes.
Deception always tells you that you are the only who is right. The rest of the world is wrong. If you come across those who holds the truth, you use what does not really matter in their lives, like tribe or nationality, to defame them in self-defense.
Friend, being in divine will is the most secured place to be on the face of the earth. It may attract persecution and all kinds of attacks but there will be a constant supply of grace and the “Unction” to “function” from the LORD. That is the only place to plant yourself if you want all that the evil one throws at you to be use by Heaven for your progress in life.
Satan will prefer having us in what everyone sees as divine will but in spirit and in truth not really God’s will for our lives. He knows that is a perfect prison, yes, a special one, where the prisoner is handed the key to the prison door for keeps. He knows the prisoner will never use it to free himself because of the effect of his deception.
So many folks in religious circles, built their faith, marriages, finances, careers, families, businesses etc. on things that look like GOD but are not really GOD – Human wisdom mixed with forms of religion.
Friend, humanistic philosophies, or secular humanism has not helped anyone.
As the world become more and more Godless, and the church religious and worldly at the same time, there seems to be no hope for humanity. If the LORD of the harvest had not left us a remnant, the world would have quickly slipped into the state Satan had dreamed for thousands of years to bring it to.
When people become Godless, the kingdom of Satan smiles and increases unhindered among men. But when they become Godly, it shrinks and begin to put up terrible fights against those GOD may be using to do it.
GODLINESS IS ONE MAJOR FORCE THAT PUT THE ENEMY IN A PANIC MODE.
That is why He is using Godless humans to push against it by teaching humanity so many doctrines of devils and men, including humanism. Do not forget, the generation of Noah had Nephilim that were teaching them these kinds of things too. They became terribly Godless because of that.
The difference between then and now is the remnant voices that are crying out the word of truth righteousness into the hearts of men today. Again, if the LORD of Sabaoth (harvest) had not left us a remnant, we would have become like Sodom and Gomorrah or even worst.
Talking about humanism, humanism is the common way of salving problems without involving God. It is based on the wisdom of men. Anything we do that removes God from the equation is “sand” and will destroy us either in time or eternity.
The Bible says anything built on sand will be destroyed by the floods, winds, or storms of life. But that which is built on the rock will survive the floods, winds, and storms of life. The rock represents Christ or what He teaches.
Anything we build on human ideologies or wisdom is a construct on sand. Be it marriages, families, jobs, businesses, finances, faith, careers, ministries, etc. it can be eliminated by the storms, winds, and floods of life. It is what we build on the rock that will withstand the storms, winds, and floods of life. That is the core truth of our devotional text today.
It is therefore important that you build any aspect of your life that you want established beyond termination, on the Rock of ages and what He teaches, not on the sand of humanism or what human ideologies teaches.
No one can pray against the storms, winds, and floods of life not to come. Such prayers can not be answered. God did not promise us that they will not come. He only counseled us to build our lives on the Rock so that the rock can fortify us against them. That is His system of protection for us.
IF WE NEGLECT IT, WE WILL BE DOOMED.
That is why, no matter how prayerful, anointed, supernatural, or aligned you are with God, you will experience the storms, winds, and floods of life. No matter how much you know and apply to your daily life, these things will come; they will happen. They are normal occurrences of an earthly life. But if we follow God’s plans, they will leave us better and not bitter.
Therefore, if your marriage, finances, faith, career, business, ministry or etc. is built on the rock, the floods, storms and winds of life that come against them will leave them standing, but if they are not built on the rock of what the Spirit of Christ teaches, the same forces will flatten them down.
The difference between lives (marriages, finances, businesses, faith, health, expectations, jobs, ministries, visions, plans, provisions, and whatever concerns men) that are left standing after a storm, a flood, or a wind of life, and the ones that are flattened, lies in what they are built by or built upon.
Are they built by doing what the LORD said or they are built by doing what the world says? That is the question. Our devotional text today says,
“But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall”
Doing whatever the word says to us, especially at an immediate present, is one way of building our lives on the rock. Don’t forget, when you build your life on the rock, the rock will take care of you in the midst of any storm.
If you do whatever the word says, you will be in divine will. Being in divine will is the most secured place to be on the face of the earth. It attracts constant supply of grace and special UNCTION to SUCCEED despite what hits you.
That is why no storm, flood, or wind of life can throw down a life, marriage, business, family, career, church, ministry, or minister built or raised by doing what the LORD says. Yes, no evil force can successfully through down any one whose life is built by doing the word or command of the LORD.
LOOK AT WHAT HAPPENED TO ONE OF THE APOSTLES OF JESUS CHRIST.
The Bible says he was caught up in terrific storms, floods, and winds of life during his ministry on earth. His life was constantly in jeopardy. One day he turned to God in prayer for help. But hear what the LORD said to him;
“My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9 NKJV)
Being in constant jeopardy will do nothing to you if you are enjoying constant flow of God’s grace upon your life. It will not destroy your life because of the sufficient grace that will be made available. I have seen these actualized in my life. There are things that happens, not because you are the most prayerful, no! They happen because you are planted in the center of GOD’s perfect will for your life.
Whatever storm, wind, or flood of the evil one that hit us while we are in the center of GOD’s will, may hurt but will never take us out. If you make up your mind this day to begin to spend your days in the center of God’s will, you will begin to enjoy things, not because you prayed, but because God’s will says so.
As we bring this devotional to a close, I want you to understand that your faith, prayers, or fasting will never eliminate or stop the storms, floods, or winds of life from rising and hitting you. No! But you can survive all of them and come out stronger if your life is planted at the center of God’s will for it.
May this day speak blessings into your life, in Jesus precious name! AMEN!!
MAKE THIS SCRIPTURE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR THE DAY;
“To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in you; Let me not be ashamed; Let not my enemies triumph over me. Indeed, let no one who waits on you be ashamed; let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without cause.”
“Show me your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day. Remember, O Lord, Your tender mercies and your lovingkindnesses, for they are from of old.”
“Do not remember the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions; according to your mercy remember me, for your goodness’ sake, O Lord. Good and upright is the Lord; Therefore He teaches sinners in the way.”
“The humble He guides in justice, and the humble He teaches His way. All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth, to such as keep His covenant and His testimonies.”
“For Your name’s sake, O Lord, Pardon my iniquity, for it is great. Who is the man that fears the Lord? Him shall He teach in the way He chooses. He himself shall dwell in prosperity, and his descendants shall inherit the earth.”
“The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant.” Psalms 25:1-14 NKJV