Open Heavens Daily Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye

 OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL

DATE: WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 16TH 2024

THEME: THE FUTURE YOU

MEMORISE: Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons;    Deuteronomy 4:9

READ: Deuteronomy 6:6-7 

6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:

7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

MESSAGE

No matter how hard you try, you cannot live forever. The only way you can continue to live in the next generation is through your children. This is why you must raise your children well.

You have learnt some lessons in life so far, some of which were from mistakes you made in the past. You must ensure that the people you leave behind after God has called you home are taught these lessons so that they don't have to make the same mistakes you made. If your children make the same mistakes you made, you have not done a good job of teaching them. It is where you stop that they should start from; they should not repeat your mistakes. If you are a father and you don't want your children to be greater than you, it only means that your greatness will die with you. Abraham was great, Isaac was very great, and Jacob was exceedingly great; that is the correct order of things. Years ago, before God gave me a private jet, one of my sons bought a jet, and some people criticized me for publicly dedicating it, saying that I, the father, did not even have a Mercedes Benz. I responded, "The jet belongs to my son, show me what your son has."

I often ask my children to pray that I am not taken away soon because it is where I stop that they will start from. Some of my children are already pastoring churches that are bigger than the one I pastored when I first became General Overseer.

When many people read Proverbs 13:22, they think that the inheritance that the Bible refers to is only money. If you are a good man, the inheritance you will leave for your children will exceed money; the major inheritance you will leave for them will be wisdom, and you will also leave influence, a good name, properties, and so on. Therefore, you must train the ones who will carry on from where you stop. Sometimes you will need to leave some of the things you are doing now to train them because you must invest in the 'future you'. Occasionally, I take my children and grandchildren to our hometown, where we can be alone. In those times, tell them stories, answer their questions, and we just have a nice time together. I am leaving an inheritance for the ‘future me,' I hope you are doing the same.

REFLECTION

How much are you investing in the 'future you'?

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Mark 10-11

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A ADEBOYE

HYMN 28: GUIDE ME, O THOU GREAT JEHOVAH

1. Guide me, O thou  great Jehovah

pilgrim through this barren land;

I am weak, but you are mighty;

hold me with your powerful hand.

Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,

feed me now and evermore,

feed me now and evermore.

2. Open now the crystal fountain,

where the healing waters flow.

Let the fire and cloudy pillar

lead me all my journey through.

Strong Deliverer, strong Deliverer,

ever be my strength and shield,

ever be my strength and shield.

3. When I tread the verge of Jordan,

bid my anxious fears subside.

Death of death, and hell's Destruction,

land me safe on Canaan's side.

Songs of praises, songs of praises

I will ever sing to you,

I will ever sing to you.

Open Heavens Prayer Points

PRAYER POINTS ON TODAY'S OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL

Tuesday, 15th October 2024 

WISDOM

Special Note.

These prayer points are not written by Pastor E. A. Adeboye, but by one of his, disciples, of Christ, who was inspired and mandated by the Holy Spirit, effective, January 1st, 2015, to start writing these prayer points, based on the Open Heavens Daily Devotional  authored by Pastor E. A. Adeboye.

Some of the prayer points are deep spiritually and may not be understood by carnal minds.

If you want to be blessed from these prayer points, you must first, surrender Your life, to the Lord Jesus Christ, Himself, by saying this prayer:

“Lord Jesus, I come to You with a deeply repentant heart, please, forgive me all my sins. I surrender my life to you, today, and, I accept You, as my personal Lord and Saviour. Please, come into my life and save my soul from eternal destruction in hell fire. In Jesus' name, I pray.”

PRAYER POINTS

1.Father, thank You, for You are the God of all wisdom, knowledge and understanding; by Your wisdom You made the heavens and the earth, and all that are in them.

2.Father, thank You, for Your Spirit in man that inspired the writing of the scriptures for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness that we may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

3.Father, please, help me not to ignore the cry of wisdom, help me to be interested in getting wisdom so as not to suffer the consequences of being foolish, in Jesus' name 

4.Father, please, let divine wisdom pour out her spirit on me, to teach me her words that I may be tremendously blessed for it, in Jesus' name 

5.Father, please, help me to fear You, and to prove my fear for You, may I depart from all forms of evil, in Jesus' name. 

6.Father, please, help me to build and strengthen my relationship with You that I may get wisdom. Make me wise not to commit sin and display foolishness, in Jesus' name 

7.Father, please, as You give me wisdom, help me to apply it correctly, in Jesus' name

8.Father, please, help me to desire and hunger for knowledge in studying and meditating on the scriptures, and reading books that will edify my spirit and soul, in Jesus' name 

9.Father, please, help me to be humble enough to ask questions so as to get more wisdom and knowledge, even if I have to ask someone to teach me, in Jesus' name.

10.Father, please, help me to seek after the principal thing, Jesus Christ, the wisdom of God. May I never be separated from You Jesus and please, give me wisdom to live for You 

11.Father, bless your son, Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye;  grant him divine health and long life; and, bless his ministry, home, and family (biological and spiritual), help them to remain a shining light forever, in Jesus' name.

12.Father, bless Your son that You have been using to prepare these prayer points, beyond measures, and all those who have been rebroadcasting them, in Jesus' name.

13.Father, let every challenge, hindrance and obstacle of getting these prayer points across to Your children, timely, and on daily basis be removed, in Jesus' name.

14.Your Personal petitions.

( Philippians 4:6)

15..In Jesus' name I pray.

(John 14:13-14; 15:16)

16.Thank You Father for answered prayers.

(1 Thessalonians 5:18).

#GodBlessOurNation

These prayers have no expiry dates! Please, pray them, irrespective of the time they get to you. Remain blessed, in Jesus' name.

Kindly, purchase your own hard copy or online version of the Open Heavens devotional & buy for your friends too, as a potent evangelism tool. God bless you, as you sow, into Pastor E.A. Adeboye's, books ministry.

Note:

You may not add, subtract or rearrange these prayer points.

 The Holy Spirit is the author, though He used someone, who, out of humility has refused to take glory for it, by not putting his name. It is plagiarism to use, or pass as your own, someone else writing or work. The original author of these prayer points is the Holy Spirit. So, share, but don't share His glory with Him in the process.

Remain blessed, as you obey, in Jesus' name.

Open Heavens Daily Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye

 OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL

DATE: TUESDAY OCTOBER 15TH 2024

THEME: WISDOM

MEMORISE:

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. Proverbs 4:7

READ: PROVERBS 1:20-33

20 Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets:

21 She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,

22 How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?

23 Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

24 Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;

25 But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:

26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;

27 When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.

28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:

29 For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD:

30 They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.

31 Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices.

32 For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.

33 But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.

MESSAGE:

Today's memory verse says that in everything you get, you must get wisdom. In other words, wisdom is the most important thing you can get.

More interestingly, the Bible reading for today tells us that wisdom is crying in the streets:

"Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets:" Proverbs 1:20

Unfortunately, many people ignore the cry of wisdom and are not interested in her. People who do not heed the cry of wisdom usually suffer the consequences of being foolish, and it may be too late by the time they realize it. For people who will let wisdom pour out her spirit on them and teach them her words, she always makes herself available, and they are tremendously blessed for it.

I am sure you are asking yourself, "How can I get wisdom?" Psalm 111:10 says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. If you want to be wise, the place to start from is to fear God and prove that you fear Him. Proverbs 16:6 says that the fear of the Lord is to depart from evil. Every time people commit sin, they are simply displaying foolishness. Daniel 2:20-22 says that it is God who gives wisdom to the wise. If a fellow does not have a relationship with God, he or she cannot get wisdom. James 1:5 says:

"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."

The way to get wisdom is first to fear God and then simply ask Him for wisdom; it is as simple as that. Now, because wisdom is the correct application of knowledge, the limit to your wisdom will be how limited you are in knowledge. As you ask God for wisdom, you must also increase in knowledge so that you will keep increasing in wisdom. This is why I am always reading books. I want to learn something new every day, even if I have to ask someone to teach me.

Beloved, wisdom indeed is the principal thing. Jesus Christ Is the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24) and you must accept Him as your Lord and Saviour if you want to be wise.

PRAYER POINT:

Father, please give me wisdom.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: MARK 8-9

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A ADEBOYE

HYMN 3: ANCIENT WORD

1 Holy words long preserved for our walk in this world,

They resound with God's own heart,

Oh, let the Ancient words impart.

Refrain

Ancient words ever true,

Changing me, and changing you,

We have come with open hearts,

Oh, let the ancient words impart.

2 Words of Life, words of Hope,

Give us strength, help us cope,

In this world, where e'er we roam,

Ancient words will guide us Home.

3 Holy words of our Faith,

Handed down to this age,

Came to us through sacrifice,

Oh, heed the faithful words of Christ.

4 Holy words long preserved,

For our walk in this world,

They resound with God's own heart,

Oh, let the ancient words impart.

Open Heavens Prayer Points

PRAYER POINTS ON Today’s OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL

Monday, 14th October 2024 

COVER NOT YOUR SINS 

Special Note.

These prayer points are not written by Pastor E. A. Adeboye, but by one of his, disciples, of Christ, who was inspired and mandated by the Holy Spirit, effective, January 1st, 2015, to start writing these prayer points, based on the Open Heavens Daily Devotional  authored by Pastor E. A. Adeboye.

Some of the prayer points are deep spiritually and may not be understood by carnal minds.

If you want to be blessed from these prayer points, you must first, surrender Your life, to the Lord Jesus Christ, Himself, by saying this prayer:

“Lord Jesus, I come to You with a deeply repentant heart, please, forgive me all my sins. I surrender my life to you, today, and, I accept You, as my personal Lord and Saviour. Please, come into my life and save my soul from eternal destruction in hell fire. In Jesus' name, I pray.”

PRAYER POINTS

1.Father, I give You thanks for Your loving kindness and Your mercy that endureth for ever, thank You for not withholding Your mercy from me

2.Father, thank You, for by Your mercy I am still alive. Thank You for not consuming me in Your anger

3.Father, please, I am sorry, in every area of my life that I have sinned against You, forgive me. Help me not to take Your mercy for granted anymore, don't let me continue in my sin but to repent of them all, to confess and forsake them, in Jesus' name 

4.Father, please, help me not to cover any sin that I have committed against You, help me to accept my wrongs and ask for mercy, in Jesus' name 

5.Father, please, help me not to keep making excuses for my wrongs; help me not to seek the approval of men but to genuinely repent even when it demands a public confession of my wrongs, in Jesus' name. 

6.Father, please, as I cry out to You for mercy, do not close Your ears to me, do not reject me like You rejected Saul; help me to be like David, always seeking to please You, in Jesus' name 

7.Father, please, help me not to destroy my relationship with You; whenever I am wrong, let me not deceive myself by trying to keep up appearances, but to immediately ask for mercy, in Jesus' name

8.Father, please , teach me to say "I am sorry, forgive me" whenever I go wrong even to my subordinates, let me not feel too big to ask for their mercy when I offend them, in Jesus' name 

9.Father, the people sought an offence against Daniel but found none for he lived above error. Please, help me to please You and to live above sins and errors, don't let sin have dominion over me again, in Jesus' name.

10.Father, henceforth, help me to walk before You and be perfect all through the days of my life, let me be found pure, spotless and without wrinkle when You appear in glory to rapture the saints, in Jesus' name. 

11.Father, bless your son, Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye;  grant him divine health and long life; and, bless his ministry, home, and family (biological and spiritual), help them to remain a shining light forever, in Jesus' name.

12.Father, bless Your son that You have been using to prepare these prayer points, beyond measures, and all those who have been rebroadcasting them, in Jesus' name.

13.Father, let every challenge, hindrance and obstacle of getting these prayer points across to Your children, timely, and on daily basis be removed, in Jesus' name.

14.Your Personal petitions.

( Philippians 4:6)

15..In Jesus' name I pray.

(John 14:13-14; 15:16)

16.Thank You Father for answered prayers.

(1 Thessalonians 5:18).

#GodBlessOurNation

These prayers have no expiry dates! Please, pray them, irrespective of the time they get to you. Remain blessed, in Jesus' name.

Kindly, purchase your own hard copy or online version of the Open Heavens devotional & buy for your friends too, as a potent evangelism tool. God bless you, as you sow, into Pastor E.A. Adeboye's, books ministry.

Note:

You may not add, subtract or rearrange these prayer points.

 The Holy Spirit is the author, though He used someone, who, out of humility has refused to take glory for it, by not putting his name. It is plagiarism to use, or pass as your own, someone else writing or work. The original author of these prayer points is the Holy Spirit. So, share, but don't share His glory with Him in the process.

Remain blessed, as you obey, in Jesus' name.

Open Heavens Daily Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye

 OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL 

DATE: MONDAY OCTOBER 14TH 2024.

TOPIC: COVER NOT YOUR SINS

MEMORISE:

“He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” - (Proverbs 28:13)

READ: 1 SAMUEL 15:22-29 (KJV)

22  And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

24 And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice.

25 Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD.

26 And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel.

27 And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle, and it rent.

28 And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou.

29 And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent.

MESSAGE:

In my primary school days, our teacher told us the story of a man who offended his king. The king was very angry and called the man concerning the issue. The man immediately got on his knees and pleaded for mercy. He admitted his offence and said that he was very sorry. The king pardoned him because of his repentant heart. Our teacher told us that if we are wrong and admit it while asking for mercy, we will obtain mercy. However, if we try to cover our wrongs, we will surely get punished. The lesson stuck with me, and so, when I do something wrong, I don’t try to cover it. If I offend God, I turn to Him and say, “Lord, I have offended you, please have mercy on me.”

If you want to obtain mercy from God, you must not cover any sins that you commit. The reason God always had mercy on David is that he never tried to cover his sins; rather, he would confess them to God. In (1 Chronicles 21:1-16), when Gad came to tell David that he had offended God, not only did David accept his wrong, he called the elders to fast and pray with him for forgiveness. Compare that to Saul in (1 Samuel 15:20-21). After Samuel had come to tell him that he had not carried out God’s instruction to the letter, he made excuses instead of accepting his wrong. When Samuel refused to worship God with him, he did not plead with him to help appease God, rather, he pulled Samuel’s skirt just because he didn’t want the elders to see Samuel walking away from him. He clearly wasn’t making the sacrifice to ask for mercy, he was doing it to cover his sin and make everything look alright. (1 Samuel 3:19) tells us that God honoured Samuel and never allowed his words to fall to the ground, but in (1 Samuel 16:1), as much as Samuel pleaded for Saul, God said that he should not waste his time because He had rejected Saul.

Beloved, covering your sins will land you in destruction. When you do something wrong, don’t try to keep up appearances. Your Christian life is not about publicity, it is more of your personal relationship with the King of kings. Confess your sins and plead with God for mercy. When you do that, He will have mercy on you, but if you cover your sins, you are risking His total rejection.

ACTION POINT:

Don't cover your sins; confess them and repent genuinely.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: MARK 6-7

AUTHOR PASTOR E A ADEBOYE 

HYMNAL: 2 - AMAZING GRACE 

1 Amazing grace (how sweet the sound)

that saved a wretch like me!

I once was lost, but now am found,

was blind, but now I see.

2 'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,

and grace my fears relieved;

how precious did that grace appear

the hour I first believed!

3 Through many dangers, toils and snares

I have already come:

'tis grace has brought me safe thus far,

and grace will lead me home.

4 The Lord has promised good to me,

his word my hope secures;

he will my shield and portion be

as long as life endures.

5 Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail,

and mortal life shall cease:

I shall possess, within the veil,

a life of joy and peace.

6 The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,

the sun forbear to shine;

but God, who called me here below,

will be forever mine.

Open Heavens Prayer Points

PRAYER POINTS ON TODAY'S OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL

Sunday, 13th October 2024 

FRIEND OF GOD?

Special Note.

These prayer points are not written by Pastor E. A. Adeboye, but by one of his, disciples, of Christ, who was inspired and mandated by the Holy Spirit, effective, January 1st, 2015, to start writing these prayer points, based on the Open Heavens Daily Devotional  authored by Pastor E. A. Adeboye.

Some of the prayer points are deep spiritually and may not be understood by carnal minds.

If you want to be blessed from these prayer points, you must first, surrender Your life, to the Lord Jesus Christ, Himself, by saying this prayer:

“Lord Jesus, I come to You with a deeply repentant heart, please, forgive me all my sins. I surrender my life to you, today, and, I accept You, as my personal Lord and Saviour. Please, come into my life and save my soul from eternal destruction in hell fire. In Jesus' name, I pray.”

PRAYER POINTS

1.Father, thank You for loving me and giving me Your only begotten son, Jesus Christ who laid His life down that I might be saved 

2.Father, I am very grateful that You called me not a servant; for the servant knows not what His Lord does: but You have called me Your friend and You have made all things known to me

 

3.Father, thank You for giving me Your name, Your word and the Holy Spirit freely, in order to fulfill that great destiny You created me for

4.Father, please, help me to reciprocate Your love for me by constantly looking for ways to give back to You all You have given me, in Jesus' name 

5.Father, please, make me a true friend. Help me to give cheerfully, fill my heart with abundant joy, to always seek to give to You without being cajoled or forced, in Jesus' name. 

6.Father, please, help me never to give You anything that costs me nothing, let nothing be absolutely too difficult for me to give You, in Jesus' name 

7.Father, please, help me not to sow sparingly again but bountifully, that I may reap bountifully, in Jesus' name

8.Father, make me Your friend indeed, help me obey You in all things, in Jesus' name 

9.Father, please, remove every pretence from me, help me never to argue with You on all Your instructions for me, in Jesus' name.

10.Father, please, make me a "yes" friend, like father Abraham, help me to always say yes to Your instructions even when it does not make sense to people, in Jesus' name. 

11.Father, bless your son, Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye;  grant him divine health and long life; and, bless his ministry, home, and family (biological and spiritual), help them to remain a shining light forever, in Jesus' name.

12.Father, bless Your son that You have been using to prepare these prayer points, beyond measures, and all those who have been rebroadcasting them, in Jesus' name.

13.Father, let every challenge, hindrance and obstacle of getting these prayer points across to Your children, timely, and on daily basis be removed, in Jesus' name.

14.Your Personal petitions.

( Philippians 4:6)

15..In Jesus' name I pray.

(John 14:13-14; 15:16)

16.Thank You Father for answered prayers.

(1 Thessalonians 5:18).

#GodBlessOurNation

These prayers have no expiry dates! Please, pray them, irrespective of the time they get to you. Remain blessed, in Jesus' name.

Kindly, purchase your own hard copy or online version of the Open Heavens devotional & buy for your friends too, as a potent evangelism tool. God bless you, as you sow, into Pastor E.A. Adeboye's, books ministry.

Note:

You may not add, subtract or rearrange these prayer points.

 The Holy Spirit is the author, though He used someone, who, out of humility has refused to take glory for it, by not putting his name. It is plagiarism to use, or pass as your own, someone else writing or work. The original author of these prayer points is the Holy Spirit. So, share, but don't share His glory with Him in the process.

Remain blessed, as you obey, in Jesus' name.

Open Heavens Daily Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye

 OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL 

DATE: SUNDAY, OCTOBER 13TH 2024

TOPIC: FRIEND OF GOD?

MEMORISE:

“And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.” - (Genesis 14:20)

READ: 2 CORINTHIANS 9:1-7 (KJV)

 1 For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you:

2 For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many.

3 Yet have I sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this behalf; that, as I said, ye may be ready:

4 Lest haply if they of Macedonia come with me, and find you unprepared, we (that we say not, ye) should be ashamed in this same confident boasting.

5 Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness.

6 But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.

7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

MESSAGE:

I have a close friend who was the president of a country. One day, I said to him, “You’ve been president for almost seven years, and you’ve never given me anything since.” He looked at me and said, “You’ve never asked.” I replied, “Friends don’t ask. If we are friends, I don’t need to ask you. A friend gives to his or her friend without him or her asking.”

When lovers are in a courtship and there is no exchange of gifts between them, no matter how small, that love might just be questionable because one of the major ways of demonstrating love is by giving (John 3:16).

Many people claim to be God’s friends, but from their reaction when it comes to giving to God, you will realise that they are not. Real friends of God will not wait until an announcement is made for offerings to be made to God before giving to Him. Real friends of God will constantly look for ways to give to Him because of how much they love Him.

I recall a time that I went to minister at a church some years ago, and everyone in the congregation was looking so radiant. By looking at them, you could tell that God had really blessed them. I was thinking about how blessed they were when the minister on the altar said, “It’s offering time.” You could see the joy in the auditorium as they all clapped and shouted. Then, God told me, “This is why I have blessed them so much; they give to me cheerfully.” Those who are always happy to give to God, and who don’t need to be cajoled or asked before they do so, always enjoy abundant blessings. God sees them as His genuine friends, so He also doesn’t wait for them to ask before giving to them.

David was a man who always wanted to give to God. He said in (1 Chronicles 21:24) that he would never give God anything that costs him nothing. As a result, God said that He had given him everything he ever wanted and that if he wanted more, He would have given him (2 Samuel 12:8). He never let him lack anything because he was His friend indeed. God never asked Abraham for a tithe in Genesis 14:20 before Abraham gave it to Him. Nowadays, even after God has said that we should bring tithes into His house (Malachi 3:10-12), some Christians still argue about whether they should pay tithes or not. Such Christians are only pretending to be friends of God.

REFLECTION:

Are you really a friend of God?

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: MARK 4-5

AUTHOR PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE 

HYMNAL: 11 - I'VE FOUND A FRIEND IN JESUS

1 I’ve found a friend in Jesus, He’s everything to me,

  He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul;

The Apple-tree of trees, in Him alone I see

  All I need to cleanse and make me fully whole.

In sorrow He’s my comfort, in trouble He’s my stay,

  He tells me every care on Him to roll:

He’s the Apple-tree of trees, the Bright and Morning Star,

  He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.

2 He all my griefs has taken, and all my sorrows borne;

  In temptation He’s my strong and mighty tower;

I’ve all for Him forsaken, and all my idols torn

  From my heart, and now He keeps me by His power.

Though all the world forsake me, and Satan tempt me sore,

  Through Jesus I shall safely reach the goal:

He’s the Apple-tree of trees, the Bright and Morning Star,

  He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.

3 He’ll never, never leave me, nor yet forsake me here,

  While I live by faith and do His blessed will;

A wall of fire about me, I’ve nothing now to fear,

  With His manna He my hungry soul shall fill.

Then sweeping up to glory to see His blessed face,

  Where rivers of delight shall ever roll:

He’s the Apple-tree of trees, the Bright and Morning Star,

  He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.