OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL
DATE: SATURDAY JUNE 1ST, 2024.
THEME: CRY OUT!
MEMORISE:
This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.
Psalm 34:6
READ: 2 Kings 6:1-7
1 And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us.
2 Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he answered, Go ye.
3 And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go.
4 So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood.
5 But as one was felling a beam, the axe head fell into the water: and he cried, and said, Alas, master! for it was borrowed.
6 And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither; and the iron did swim.
7 Therefore said he, Take it up to thee. And he put out his hand, and took it.
MESSAGE
In our Bible reading for today, Elisha would not have known about the axe head that fell if the man who lost it did not cry out for help. Many times, we need to cry to God until He answers us. There are people who will say that you don't need to open your mouth when you pray. While it is true that God knows everything, even before you cry, if you go through the Bible, you will see many instances where people cried to God. In Psalm 120:1, David said: "In my distress I cried unto the Lord and He heard me." In Psalm 77:1, the psalmist said, "I cried with my voice," not "with my heart" as many might suggest, saying that you can close your mouth and cry with your heart.
David said, I cried with my voice, and He heard me from His holy hill" (Psalm 3:4). I pray for you; whenever you cry unto God, He will hear you, in Jesus' name. There is, however, one thing that can prevent God from hearing you, and that is sin. The Bible says that if we regard iniquity in our hearts, God will not hear us (Psalm 66:18). However, if a sinner repents and cries to God for mercy, He will hear. In Psalm 34:17, David said: The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. If you are ready to cry to God today, He will deliver you from all your troubles.
I remember when I came to Lagos to work as a lecturer at the University of Lagos way back in 1969, somebody came to me and said, "This is what people do in Lagos - they give money to a prophet so that he will be fasting and praying for them. So, you have to do the same." I thought to myself, "ignorant people, the prophet will just take your money and do nothing." Thank God that we can call on God directly and He will answer us. Isaiah 59:1-2 says:
Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
You don't have to pay anyone to pray for you. All you need is to have faith in God and live holy; whenever you cry unto Him, He will answer you.
PRAYER POINT
Take that matter that has been bothering you to God in prayers now. Cry to Him, and He will answer you.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Job 25-30
AUTHOR: PASTOR E.A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 15: PASS ME NOT O GENTLE SAVIOUR
1 Pass me not, O gentle Savior,
Hear my humble cry,
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.
Refrain:
Savior, Savior,
Hear my humble cry;
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.
2 Let me at a throne of mercy
Find a sweet relief;
Kneeling there in deep contrition,
Help my unbelief.
3 Trusting only in Thy merit,
Would I seek Thy face;
Heal my wounded, broken spirit,
Save me by Thy grace.
4 Thou the Spring of all my comfort,
More than life to me,
Whom have I on earth beside Thee?
Whom in heav'n but Thee?
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