TODAY’S DEVOTION (THURSDAY 30TH April 2026)
“nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer.
Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.” 1 Corinthians 10:9-11 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 120TH DAY OF OUR YEAR OF STRATEGIC VICTORY
Today is the last day of April 2026. God kept us from day one to today the last day. It is out of His mercies that we are not consumed. His caring eyes and loving arms are responsible for our survival till this end. I believe it will still be there for us to the end of our years on earth.
It is important that we begin with a word of gratitude.
A believer who do not know how to thank God will shut down the flow of God in their lives over time. They will wake up one morning and loose the fire to pray, fast, study the Bible. They will just be natural and maybe consoling themselves with some photos of videos.
In case you are addicted to doing God’s will, I want you to understand that thanking God in everything is the will of God. So, live a life of gratitude.
If we do things that are God’s will, the flow of God in our lives will be unstoppable. His fire will always be burning in our lives. His presence will always be there to power our prayer life, our fasting life, our devotional life and everything we do as worship. We will not find it difficult at any time to give ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.
Gratitude to God is therefore something we must uplift above everything each morning or each moment like this. Gratitude to God is a deep intentional response to thankfulness to God for His character, goodness, and grace, regardless of the circumstances. Yes, regardless of the circumstances.
Your month may not have been great as you expected but give God thanks. You might be sick, sad, seemingly unsuccessful in the things you do, single or married with problems, disappointed or persecuted for doing right, give God thanks. Gratitude is what we do regardless of the circumstances. We are commanded to do it both in happy times and trying times.
THAT IS HOW IT PROTECTS US FROM HELL AND ALL ITS DOES TO MAKE OUR LIVES BITTER AND UNDERMINE OUR WALK AND TALK WITH GOD.
If you give thanks in everything, especially the bad things, you will dispense an energy from God that can prevent the demonic from pressing into your life using what may be happening. Doing what God says we should, regardless of the circumstances is the secret of unending victories in the kingdom.
For instance, God says we should tell the truth regardless of the circumstances. He says we should not bow to any graven image or worship other gods regardless of the circumstances. He says we should not forsake the assembling of ourselves regardless of the circumstances.
He says we should live right and not compromise His ways regardless of the circumstances.
He says we should give when He asks us to do it regardless of the circumstances. He says we should keep His laws, respect His will, and say no to our flesh, regardless of the circumstances. He says we should always sow to please the Spirit regardless of the circumstances. He says we should not deny Him or our faith in Him regardless of the circumstances.
He says we should not blaspheme against Him, or His Spirit regardless of the circumstances. The things God commands us to do regardless of the circumstances is the reason we will make Heaven. They are the reason for our peace, joy and life progress.
Yes, the things we do regardless of the circumstances are the things that truly defines us and determines if we will live victorious lives or not. Giving God thanks is something we are commanded to do regardless of the circumstances. The Bible says,
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NKJV
It is when we give thanks to God in everything that we will have the fire of faith to rejoice always and pray without ceasing. Gratitude therefore must be understood and upheld.
IT MUST BE UNDERSTOOD AS SOMETHING THAT IS DEEPER THAN A POLITE APPRECIATION.
Yes, it mut be understood as a humble acknowledgement of the blessings that comes from the LORD. It is a lifestyle of appreciating God’s grace, not just a verbal “thank you LORD” thing. If we do not build a life of gratitude to God, we will be having terrible moments in life that we would not want to live to see the next day.
The spirit of hell will be playing with our emotions and putting us in moods that are not good for a human life; moods like suicide moods, not finding joy in anything, not feeling complete or fulfilled no matter your achievements in life, feeling sad or bitter for nothing, not celebrating the small victories of life or the small things we achieve, and a lot more.
If we are put in a psychological state of not finding joy or fulfillment in whatever we do, we are very close to being neutralized by the enemy.
These kinds of psychological battles and the ones not mentioned, can be cheaply prevented or handled if we learn to be grateful to God regardless the circumstances. A life of gratitude to God builds a protection around us, a protection against these things. It protects our souls from being manipulated by unclean spirits.
It secures our thoughts and helps us in keeping our hearts with all diligence, thereby protecting the life it issues from the pollution of the gates of hell.
Friend, if the gates of hell will not prevail against you, one of the many things you must always do is to thank God regardless of the circumstances. It is when we thank God regardless of the circumstances that surrounds us, that we experience different shifts in life; shifts that are necessary for moving us from glory to glory.
WE NEED THESE SHIFTS IN LIFE. THEY HELPED KING JEHOSHAPHAT IN HIS DAYS, AND CAN STILL HELP US TODAY.
They shifted him from pending defeats to a glorious victory. The enemy surrounded him like water and made great boast against him. The Bible says nations moved against him. But as he lifted his voice in thanksgiving using one of the instruments of gratitude, music, there was a shift, and the enemy was defeated.
He never allowed a sense of entitlement to creep into his heart in time of need.
One of the enemies of gratitude is a sense of entitlement. Feeling that someone is obligated to you while you have not earned it is dangerous. Feeling that you deserve what you have not earned is the reason you do not thank God or those He may have used to bless you. It is a sense of entitlement that make people expect their needs to be met without even thinking of reciprocating the kind gesture.
The life of Jehoshaphat taught us to be grateful. It teaches that gratitude, especially the one that gives God thanks regardless of the circumstances, will prevent our lives from slipping into defeat. Our devotional text presents some other dangerous things a believer can slip into if we do not live a life of gratitude to God. It says:
“nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer.
Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.” 1 Corinthians 10:9-11 NKJV
In this text we find two things we can slip into when we are not grateful, tempting Christ and complaining against God. It will bring destroyers into our spirit realms. You cannot tempt Christ and triumph in life, neither can you complain against God and still comply to His will, word and ways.
Understand that the easiest way to defeat divine help and paralyze God’s backing is to complain against God or tempt Him.
To tempt Christ is to test His patience, power, or faithfulness by purposely doing what is wrong, or purposely doubting His promises, or forcing His hands through a presumptuous arrogant attitude that demands Him to prove Himself. This is dangerous!! That was what Satan did to the LORD during the temptation. We become like him if we do it to the LORD.
If we do not thank God regardless of the circumstances, we will find ourselves tempting Christ or complain about what has not happened. Those who tempt Christ or complain against him will sink in life. It is the end of the month, time to be grateful to the LORD, and not complain or tempt the LORD!! Amen.
LET THIS SCRIPTURE BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR THE DAY!
“Praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty firmament!
Praise Him for His mighty acts; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness! Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; Praise Him with the lute and harp!
Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; Praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes! Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with clashing cymbals!
Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!” Psalm 150:1-6 NKJV
