Exodus 13:21 (KJV) And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: May God's cloud of favor bring direction to you that you may be successful in that goal to destiny, prosperity and peaceable life in Jesus mighty name.
OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL
DATE: SATURDAY FEBRUARY 10TH, 2024.
THEME: FOLLOW-UP IS KEY TO GOD.
MEMORISE:
Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel
against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD. Jeremiah 23:2
READ: Jeremiah 23:1-8
1 Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD.
2 Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD.
3 And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.
4 And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the LORD.
5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
7 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;
8 But, The LORD liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.
MESSAGE:
In our Bible reading for today, you will see God's mind about follow-up; you will see that He doesn't take follow-up lightly at all. He said pastors, and this includes anyone God has put in charge of others, should feed the sheep. When they fail to do so, they are invariably scattering the sheep, and there are woes in store for such persons. He said in verses 7 and 8 that He doesn't just want to be known as the God who brought His children out of Egypt (the bondage of the enemy) but as the Lord who brought His children out of bondage and brought them to their own land (Zion or Heaven).
God is never satisfied with you just preaching to sinners. Beyond encouraging them to confess their sins and give their lives to Christ, He is more interested in you following them up until they see Him in glory. Learn from the apostles of old; after Paul had won souls in a place, he would stay with them for a while to ensure that they become grounded in the faith (Acts 18:11, Acts 19:10, Acts 28:29-32). Even after he left, he would keep sending them letters to strengthen them even more. Those are the origins of the letters that we read in the Scriptures today and which strengthen us to date. He also often made out time to visit them so that they may be further established (Romans 1:11). In Acts 15:36, the Bible says:
And some days after Paul said unto Barnabas, Let us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the LORD, and see how they do.
Relating this to modern times, after you have won a soul, get their contact details so that you can keep calling them and sending text messages to strengthen them. You must also visit them to see how they are faring. Visit the local assembly they attend to see if they have joined the workforce there and if they are fervently serving God. Give them the opportunity to ask you questions about their walk with God. New converts always have lots of questions to ask; be there to answer their questions and explain the Scriptures to them. Don't leave them to become prey to the devil; follow them up so well until they are fully established in Christ.
KEY POINT
God wants you to follow up on souls and ensure that they abide in the kingdom.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Numbers 7
AUTHOR: PASTOR E.A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 20: STAND UP, STAND UP FOR JESUS
1 Stand up, stand up for Jesus
ye soldiers of the cross;
lift high his royal banner,
it must not suffer loss.
From vict'ry unto vict'ry
his army he shall lead
till ev'ry foe is vanquished
and Christ is Lord indeed.
2 Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
the trumpet call obey;
forth to the mighty conflict
in this his glorious day.
Ye that are men now serve him
against unnumbered foes;
let courage rise with danger
and strength to strength oppose.
3 Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
stand in his strength alone;
the arm of flesh will fail you,
ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the gospel armor,
each piece put on with prayer;
where duty calls or danger,
be never wanting there.
4 Stand up, stand up for Jesus,
the strife will not be long;
this day the noise of battle,
the next, the victor's song.
To him that overcometh
a crown of life shall be;
he with the King of glory
shall reign eternally.
Prayer Points on Today’s Open Heavens:
Friday, 9, February, 2024
HARVEST REQUIRES LABOUR
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.I worship and adore You, my Father, You're the lord of the harvest and nothing is too difficult for You to do.
2.Thank You, Father, for giving us great harvest and abundance, at all times.
3.Father, in anyway I have fallen short of your glory, please, have mercy and
forgive me; let Your mercy prevail over judgement of sin in my life, in Jesus name.
4.Father, let Your fire consume every spirit of slothfulness and procrastination, in my life, in Jesus name.
5.Father, release upon my life, the spirit of profitable hard work, in Jesus name.
6.Father, please, send more labourers into Your harvest, in Jesus name.
7.Father, remove every limitation on my way, and empower me to complete my divine assignments, within the stipulated time, in Jesus name.
8.Father, please, raise more labourers and support for all Your divine assignments in my hands and in Your Kingdom, in Jesus name.
9.Father, please, send help to me, from far and near, and give me the grace to nurture new converts, until they make it to heaven, in Jesus name.
10.Father, bless your son, Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye; and, bless his ministry, home, and family (biological and spiritual), forever, in Jesus name.
11.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.
12.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.
13.Your Personal petitions.
( Philippians 4:6)
14.In Jesus name I pray.
(John 14:13-14; 15:16)
15.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 Spdirit 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's 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.
Psalms 93:3-4 (KJV) The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves.
The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea. May the LORD who is great and mighty attend to every storm and discomforting affliction, grant you peace of mind, settle you that you may have more knowledge of Him in Jesus mighty name.
OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL
DATE: FRIDAY FEBRUARY 9TH, 2024.
THEME: HARVEST REQUIRES LABOUR
MEMORISE:
Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Matthew 9:37
READ: Matthew 9:36-38
36 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.
37 Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;
38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.
MESSAGE:
If God is ever going to use you to bring a harvest of souls into His kingdom, then you must be hardworking. This is because harvesting requires way more labor than sowing. Farmers will tell you that sowing is hard work; if you are going to sow on a large farm, you are going to work hard. However, reaping involves more hard work. This is because there is a time limit for harvesting. If you don't harvest within the time limit, the fruits will rot. The harvest of souls that God has prepared in this end-time revival is great and we have limited time. I pray that God will give you the grace to bring in the harvest, in Jesus' name.
When Peter cast his net into the sea in Luke 5:1-10. he did it alone without help, but when the harvest came, he realized that he needed more effort to bring it in. Proverbs 12:27 says that the slothful man will not roast the meat he caught while hunting. Do you know what that means? It takes hard work to hunt and harder work to prepare what was caught so it will not rot. God is not going to waste His anointing on a man who will win souls and not follow them up.
Soul winning is an easier job than following up new converts till they mature in Christ. This is why some people prefer the work of the evangelist to that of a pastor. The evangelist gets on a podium, preaches the gospel of salvation, makes an altar call, and leaves thereafter, leaving the pastor to do the hard work of
training the new converts, setting them in systems that will help them grow spiritually, answering all their questions, and teaching them regularly until they can stand on their feet. In a time of revival, you must not only be ready to do the work of an evangelist but that of
a pastor as well. John 15:16 says that you must win souls and ensure that they abide, implying that they never return to the devil.
As painful as it is, giving birth is still easier than taking care of a baby until adulthood. Parents will tell you that the work of a mother over her children never ends. Are you ready to nurture new Converts till they make it to heaven? If your answer is yes, then God will really find you useful for His work.
KEY POINT
Put more effort into the follow-up of souls till they are mature and are on the sure path to heaven.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Numbers 5-6
AUTHOR: PASTOR E.A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 4: TO THE WORK, TO THE WORK
1 To the work! to the work! we are servants of God,
Let us follow the path that our Master has trod;
With the balm of His counsel our strength to renew,
Let us do with our might what our hands find to do.
Refrain:
Toiling on, toiling on,
Toiling on, toiling on:
Let us hope, let us watch,
And labor till the Master comes.
2 To the work! to the work! let the hungry be fed;
To the fountain of life let the weary be led;
In the cross and its banner our glory shall be,
While we herald the tidings, "Salvation is free!"
3 To the work! to the work! there is labor for all;
For the kingdom of darkness and error shall fall;
And the name of Jehovah exalted shall be,
In the loud-swelling chorus, "Salvation is free!"
4 To the work! to the work! in the strength of the Lord,
And a robe and a crown shall our labor reward;
When the home of the faithful our dwelling shall be,
And we shout with the ransomed, "Salvation is free!"
