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[The Glory Unveiled]

Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of the LORD. There he pitched his tent, and there his servants dug a well. ( Genesis 26:25 )
Most successful people have this common trait; the ability to adequately prioritize their tasks. Of all the things Isaac could have done in a new land, he built an altar first. He put the building of the altar even ahead of his place of rest [tent]. When we give God the first and the best, we have the rest of everything to ourselves. Often we try to find a place to pitch our tents (houses/homes) before we look for a place to build God’s altar (secure our prayer life). But in the order of spiritual alignment, that is an outright misplaced priorities. God is the foundation of everything and all things. All things derive their source and meaning from God. We need to give God his place before we can have our place. When our priorities are ordered right, we would have places to dig our wells. Blessings seem to be permitted to spring forth like the waters of a well or a fountain only when the right order of things are carried out. We need to give God first place in our priorities. Having an altar secures a place for our spiritual existence. It gives access to heaven to interact with earth—us. As Believers we need to have our prayer altars come first in all things. Instead of desiring the blessings of the well [water] we should rather build our prayer altars and ensure that it kindles with fire. And then all the other things shall be given. Every other thing in our lives must derive their place from the position of our altars. Without first properly securing an altar, nothing is secured.

Prayer_Bead: Omnipotent Father, Omniscient Lord, thank you for the grace to prioritize right. May the fire of my altar kindle.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. ( Joel 2:13 )

It is a very common old testament practice to see people rend their clothes when they sin and have come to acknowledge it, and to seek forgiveness. Many a person have the natural inkling to act up when they are wrong. This is often true when one has been trying to deal with a sin or a challenge by him/herself. In order to feel remorse or regret we sometimes tend to transfer our displeasure to the things around us. In the day of Joel, the prophet, the practice of rending one’s clothes as a sign of remorse for one’s wrongs had become so commonly practiced that the relevance or the true intentions for practicing it was lost. It is common to want to transfer one’s pain and regrets to something or someone other than ourselves. But the love of God for man has made enough room for His mercies to be dispensed. God would relent from sending the calamities due a people when His heart is touched from the sincerity of our hearts in repentance. For this reason, God asks us to rend our hearts instead of our garments. Our hearts are the seat of our emotions and desires. So to rend our hearts is the truest expression of remorse and repentance. Being bitter and angry with ourselves because we have not been faithful to God or because we allowed a sin that entangles us easily and tearing our garments in the process is sometimes a sign of pride. It shows that we depended on ourselves to come clean before God instead of depending on God to come clean. True repentance comes from the heart, not outside of it. Let us return to the LORD our God in rendered hearts not garments.

Prayer_Bead: Gracious and Compassionate Father, the Lord who is slow to anger and abounding in love, thank you for the grace to come to you in true repentance.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.” But the people said nothing. ( 1Kings 18:21 )

The making of a choice is almost always a difficult thing, more so when our alternatives are knocked down to two seemingly convincing opinions. In the day of Elijah, the prophet, the people were losing a clear picture of their God; his nature and power. They were torn between two opinions [the Deity of Almighty God and the deity of Baal]. They had been living with the people who worship idols for so long that it seem to them that Baal, the idol many people adored in their time was God. In our personal and private walks, we are usually brought to the foot of mountains that seem impossible to cross, we come to crossroads where we have to make a choice between two very confusing or convincing things. In situations like that, our human faculties sometimes become unhelpful. We need to depend in times like that on the hand of God to point us in the way to go. Sometimes God points at the right choice with signs or wonders or a miracle. Other times it could be a quiet impression on our hearts. Either way we would know because our spirit will bear witness with the Spirit of God. And so, Elijah decided to help the people of his land to make the good choice among the Deities they were exposed to. He put the prophets (and by extension their Deities) to a test. The one who came out successful in the face of everyone was God indeed. In the verses that followed, the true God emerged. Now, the fact is, we cannot continue to waver between two options for too long. We must let God guide us into the right choice among all the alternatives life will present to us, by calling upon God as Elijah did.

Prayer_Bead: Lord Almighty, the true God of all generations, thank you for the grace and opportunity to make the right choice by your leading. Help me not to harden my heart to your will.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

She [the slave girl] kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her. ( Acts 16:18 )

The slave girl in the text of scripture above was demon possessed. She made predictions of the future with evil spirits. She had been following the apostle Paul and his team around. Making proclamations that she was not asked to make even if they seem true. Eve in the garden of Eden also tolerated the Serpent for far too long and before she could say “Jack”, she lost her position in the garden of God. Many other people lost their spiritual positions because they had tolerated the devil for too long. In Matthew 16:23, Jesus would have to rebuke the devil. Even though he (the devil) borrowed the mind of Jesus’ lead disciple, Peter, Jesus didn’t tolerate him nonetheless. The devil would go any length to steal what is yours if you allow him. The apostle Paul got to that point where he couldn’t tolerate the devil any longer. One thing is sure, if anyone gives the devil a footstool by tolerating his works and ideas, such a fellow will discover sooner rather than later that the devil had stolen and destroyed everything that is rightfully theirs and may even kill their desire for spiritual acquaintance with God. We need to grow tired of tolerating everything contrary to our inherent divine nature. Whatever the devil has been going around with us doing to undermine the word of God in our lives will cease when we grow tired of it. Stop the voice of the devil around you before it drowns the voice of God in you.

Prayer_Bead: Lord of glory and all power, let your voice swallow up every contrary utterance. Let it drown the speakings of the devil around me. In Jesus’ name.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

The power of the LORD came upon Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel. ( 1Kings 18:46 )

Today’s devotional scripture verse is an excerpt from a very popular account in the old testament. Elijah had just prayed that it may rain, but before the rains came, he asked King Ahab to start heading home. So Ahab got on his chariots and begun his journey back to Jezreel. Afterwards, Elijah came down from the mountain to begin his journey. Apparently, everyone would agree that at this point, Ahab would have left a good distance for Elijah to cover. This event can be likened to life’s journey. Every one starts at the foot of the mountain. But then some people seem advantaged due to the fact of their circumstances while others seem disadvantaged due to the same reasons. But the good news is that the true advantage is in God. Like Elijah, we can overtake in life, in the corporate world, and in any other environment. As Believers, our advantage is in the power of God. We need the power of God like Elijah, to activate the ability to excel and overtake. The anointing to begin and finish anything is in the power of God. How could a man on foot outrun another carried by chariots? Interestingly, Ahab and Elijah were trying to avoid a heavy rain. In our attempt to avoid a crisis, we cannot trust our own resources. Ahab had a chariot, which is unarguably the fastest means of transportation in their day but that could not carry him fast enough. The surest resource is in the power of God. Let the power of God over all your circumstances.

Prayer_Bead: O Lord, let your power distinguish me from my competitors. Brace me to overtake in the race out of every crisis, in Jesus’ name.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

There is no fear in love: true love has no room for fear, because where fear is, there is pain; and he who is not free from fear is not complete in love. ( 1 John 4 :18)

The pain, [suspicions of what could go wrong] in a relationship, afflicts the heart with fear. And where fear is, love cannot find full expression. Many relationships that would have otherwise blossomed under the nourishment of love have been choked to die by fear. Fear of imaginary pain and fear of punishments for wrong sustained by the thought of “what ifs”. But 1 Corinthians 13:5 says that love keeps no record of wrongs. With this understanding in the background of our thoughts, we can agree that whenever fear is tolerated in the mind of one or both parties in any relationship, pain is being incubated. And fear of pain or fear of punishment is the entry point for the kind of fear that kills love. Fear has never permitted the fullness of anything to emerge. It truncates the glory of potential before it is opportuned to manifest. For any relationship to thrive, the fear of punishments or pain must not be given room. Usually, what people fear comes upon them (Job 3:25). And then what the other person wouldn’t and couldn’t have done, they seem to be doing as a confirmation to that fear. Eventually, love begins to die as a result. If you truly love something or someone, have no fear of losing it or them. Have no fear of being punished by them for any wrong. Have no fear of being inflicted with pain (being hurt) by them. Love will always take a leap of faith that fear is unwilling to take. Remember, our love is complete only when we are free from fear.

Prayer_Bead: Father in heaven, lover of my soul, sustainer of my spirit, thank you for the spirit of love and the grace to be complete in love. I pray that fear be far from me as far as the east is from the west.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land; ( Isaiah 1:19)

We know that anytime a statement begins with “if”, it is suggestive of a condition. The best in the land where God had sent His people had always been there but it is only released or enjoyed when pre-determined conditions are met. God has presets that guide the dispensing of the best things hidden in every land. Be it the land of business, relationship, marriage, leadership, ministry etc. The conditions are willingness and obedience. Willingness speaks to desires and passion, whereas obedience creates the grounds for achievements. Without a willingness to want to have something, the desire to make a decision or obey instructions that would lead to the acquisition of the thing wouldn’t be feasible. Sometimes we “claim” blessings and favours we do not desire and are unwilling to obey God for yet we say “Amen” to them, isn’t it a fallacy. The conditions that permit the enjoyment of the good in any land cannot be bent or compromised. We can only observe the conditions to the letter, there is no way around conditions such as these. Do you want to eat the best of your land? Then your desire should be aroused and your willingness to obey should be unquestionably sound. If the conditions are met, the promise would be fulfilled. Whether or not we enjoy the best of the land where we are or where we are going is dependent on ourselves.

Prayer_Bead: Father of the fatherless, Saviour of the world, thank you for your promises. Give me the power to desire and obey the conditions that bring out the best of my land.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” ( John 11:4 )

Lazarus [the one Jesus loves] was sick and word was sent to Jesus to come and heal him. The love of God for us is what necessitates that He reveals His  glory through us. And that love sometimes causes things to seem like God has abandoned us. God’s love patiently waits for us to come to the place where the greatest glory can be extracted. In the scope of divine affairs no situation is incapable of bringing glory to God. In fact, the more broken and damaged or irreparable the problem, the more glory can be extracted for God. So even though Jesus could have gone to heal Lazarus when he was sick, he waited until he died first, before going on to resurrect him. That way, the glory of God was revealed to a greater degree. At the heart of whatever we may be facing right now is the glory of God. God is able to extract His glory from all our life’s experiences, the good, the bad and the ugly. Lazarus was sick and eventually died but God did not write him off. Our situations do not define us or suggest that God doesn’t love us as much as other people. No, like Lazarus, God loves us all and wishes to reveal to the world what glory He has hidden in us. Your circumstances will reveal what God hid in you. Keep hope alive, God is not done with you.

Prayer_Bead: King of Glory, thank you for your loving kindness and graciousness. Extract your glory from all of my life circumstances.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall. ( Psalms 55:22 )

God is the sustainer of all things both in heaven and under the heavens. He sustains all things by His powerful word (Hebrews 1:3). The truth is that, there is no situation outside the control of God. Whether we believe it or not, God is above and beyond every challenge life could bring our way. Everything proceeds from Him, they take their root and essence in God. One may ask but why are there so much turmoil and chaos all around them? The reason is probably hidden in the verse above. God only sustains us or rather we feel sustained when we cast our burdens on God. Hence we feel abandoned by God or burdened with life’s crisis because we have not left our burdens to God. We cannot carry our burdens and still expect the sustenance of God. It’s either we carry our burdens and all of its consequences or leave them to God in assurance of faith. You have not left your problems in the hands of God if you are not at peace. The prove that we have left our cares and burdens to God is the peace of mind we experience. If it is in the hands of God, then it is out of our hands. And if so, we have no no need for fear. For the righteous will not fall when God carries their burdens and cares.

Prayer_Bead: Father of all lives, thank you for your love. I leave my burdens and fears in your hands. Take charge of all things, in Jesus’ name.

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[The Glory Unveiled]

The one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases him.” ( John 8:29 )

The life of Jesus, the written accounts are templates for our faith walk into the fullness of His nature. As our template and pattern, we are to imitate the Lord Jesus’ way of life and His words. And in our attempt to walk in the pattern of His life, we will discover that we are not alone. Quite often, the reason why we experience “isolation crisis” or we feel all alone and abandoned in life and in our walk with God is because we are living outside the provisions of God’s grace. It is a problem of not living by faith, not trusting God for what He says He would do or when He would do it. And without faith no man can please God as Hebrews 11:6 records. Jesus says the Father never leaves Him. Jesus was always conscious of the Father’s presence. Anytime we feel the withdrawal of the Holy Spirit, there is a possibility of apparent departure from a life pleasing to God. A permanent and consistent relationship with the Lord is guaranteed by a life pleasing to God. God will never leave nor forsake anyone who lives for His glory. The price then for a life with God is consistently doing what God approves. Living a life of faith even when the world around us says and does otherwise.

Prayer_Bead: Father in Heaven, thank you for the template and pattern of my walk with you, even the Lord Jesus. Help me to live a life pleasing to you.

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