YOUR SHIELD OF FAITH

"Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked." Ephesians 6:16 KJV

Paul says, “…Taking the shield of faith….” The word “taking” is from the word "analambano", which is a compound of the Greek words ana and lambano. The word ana means "up, back, or again"; the word lambano means "to take up or to take in hand". When compounded together, it means "to take something up in hand or to pick something back up again". This plainly means your shield of faith can be either picked up or laid down. It places the responsibility on you as to whether you will use your shield of faith or allow yourself to go through life unprotected. 

If you want to employ the use of your faith, you must make the choice to take it in hand and to place it in front of you. It will not assume its defensive position over your life by accident. Your faith will only operate in your life the way it was meant to do when you choose to pick it up and put it where it belongs - out in front of you.

If you ever go into battle without your shield of faith, you are making a mistake you will seriously regret. Keeping your shield of faith in position is not an option, if you intend to overcome the enemy and win the battles that are before you. Therefore, I urge you not to go into battle without this all-important piece of your spiritual armor. If you fail to keep that protective shield in front of you, you leave yourself exposed and vulnerable to the deadly strikes of your adversary, the devil.

Further Scripture Study: He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

Declare This: Dear Lord, I thank You for giving me a shield of faith that completely covers me from head to toe. From today I commit myself to always hold on to it in Jesus name Amen.

HOW HUNGRY ARE YOU

"Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled." Matthew 5:6 KJV

How hungry are you for God? Is your hunger low or running over like springs of living water? David, was a man after God’s own heart, but why did God loved him so much? His hunger for God, he kept on filling himself with God (God's Word, Praises, Love). So, what are you filling yourself with? Jesus said if you have a hunger for righteousness (meaning to be right with God), you will be filled. Many today are hungering and thirsting for God in their lives, but not being filled because they aren’t filling themselves with the right things.

Because you had a wonderful time last Sunday doesn't mean you shouldn't go to church next Sunday. When you're hungry for God, you'll always desire to be in His presence all the time. Psalm 122:1 says "I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord. David had his heart set for the things of God only.

The more you talk about your hunger and think about it, the hungrier you become. The more you talk about your hunger for God, the more hungrier for Him you'll become and the more He is available for you. A pregnant woman has hunger for some cravings and always hungry with weird appetite. This is the same way your hunger should be for the Word of God. Being hungry for the Holy Spirit or the Word of God is a blessing on its own. Stay hungry in Him and be filled. 

Further Scripture Study: Psalms 34:8 

Declare This: Dear Father, I hunger and taste for You daily. I choose to be constantly filled of You in Jesus name Amen. 

IT TAKES TWO

And He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, You know.” Ezekiel 37:3 AMP

Having clearly in Ezekiel's mind the picture of a helpless, impossible and impracticable situation, God posed a question to him, can these bones live? Knowing the One in whom he trusted Ezekiel responded ‘O Lord God, You know.’ While the question is somewhat rhetorical, Ezekiel's answer was not one of uncertainty but with the assurance that with God all things are possible. This should be the mindset of every believer; we worship a God Who knows all, the beginning from the end, the Alpha and the Omega.

It takes two to complete the job; you start & He finishes. There was a gradual progression in the process of restoring the bones to life. Ezekiel says as "I prophesied, there was a noise, and suddenly a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to bone. Indeed, as I looked, the sinews and the flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them over; but there was no breath in them" (verse 7-8). 

God’s power can change any situation and give life to anything dead. When you play your part in any circumstance you find yourself, expect God to do His part. He never fails to play His part. like the saying, it takes two to tangle; this is the same with God. There are no hard cases, no problems too big for our God and no situation that we face that comes as a surprise to Him.

Further Scripture Study: Jeremiah 32:27; 1 Corinthians 3:10 

Declare This: Precious Heavenly Father, You are the God of all impossibilities and nothing can limit You. Thank You for making alive and changing any unwanted situation in my life in Jesus name Amen.

THINKING TOO MUCH

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Proverbs 4:23, NIV

There are some who are thinkers. They ponder, muse, speculate, evaluate, and explore everything. If it were possible, they could help you think of things in your own mind. A certain amount of self-evaluation can be good. We should have insight into ourselves, our motives, our choices, our actions and our thoughts. 

Sometimes thinking too much can be exciting, productive, adrenaline-inducing and other times it can be stressful, burdensome and depressing. Overthinking will complicates things because when you over-think about something you are most definitely complicating it. Thinking too much turns something simple into something so complicated in your mind; to the point where coming out of the complication seems impossible.

Sometimes it makes you live in fear and you find yourself never taking the right action. An over-thinker constantly keeps on thinking of the worst possible outcomes, to every situation and scenario. It cripples your inner strength and paralyses your faith.

I encourage you to find ways to channel your thoughts with God's thoughts by staying in His Word. When you do, you'll become creative or productive in anything you choose to embark on without thinking too much.

Further Scripture Study: Exodus 14:14

Declare This: Dear Father, my mind is in You Lord and my heart is Yours too. I will not allow my mind overthink what You have already settled in Your Word in Jesus name Amen.

ABLE GOD

"And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work." 2 Corinthians 9:8 KJV

One of the most important things we need to realize as Christians is that God is the ultimate Source of everything. All the stuff that you “own” really comes not from your provision but from God’s. Everything that you have belongs to God; yes everything. The money, the house you live in, car you drive, family that you have and the life you are living, all belong to God. Everything comes from God and therefore He is the Owner. If He owns it all, we are just the managers of what He has. 

Our biggest challenge in all of this is the fact that we think we are the owners of all our stuff. So, we start acting like the owners and start calling the shots. Whatever it is you think you own cannot be compared to the fullness of what God has in store for you. He has promised to make all grace abound towards you so that you will always be sufficient in all things. The promise of God does not change, if He said, He will definitely do it. 

He is Our Able God and He has never broken a promise and He never will. He is worthy of your trust and when you place your trust in Him you will never go wrong. The sufficiency of the grace of God and the resources that God’s grace gives us are abundant, so take full advantage of the grace availed to you. Depend solely on Him, when you do, you will abound in every good work.

Further Scripture Study: Ephesians 3:20 

Declare This: Dear Father, I will always depend and hold on to the grace You have released into my life. I am forever grateful for Your promise to me in Jesus name Amen.

REJOICE

"Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice." Philippians 4:4 KJV

Someone may ask is it really possible to rejoice always? What does this mean? Am I supposed to go around with a constant smile on my face? Is it wrong to feel depressed or sad? Am I supposed to deny pain or sorrow? How can you command a feeling, anyway? Just reading the verse might even get some people depressed, because they despair of ever being able to do it.

We need to recognize that what Paul commands here is as plain as it can be. He tells us to rejoice in the Lord always, he thought so much of this, he repeated himself in the same breath. This means to rejoice in him regardless of our challenges and circumstances, whether favorable or not. You may ask, why do I need to rejoice all the time, why do I need to be joyful always, What do I have to rejoice about, especially when it looks like my world is falling apart? I’ll give you three reasons why you should rejoice.

Firstly, because of "what He has done". Secondly, because of "what He’s doing now". Regardless of whether you realize it or not, God has given you innumerous blessings. And right now, He’s preparing you to receive much more blessings. Thirdly, because of "what He will do". He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.

Further Scripture Study: Psalms 9:2; Ephesians 1:3; Philippians 1:3  

Declare This: Dear Father, I choose to be joyful always. I will not allow the cares of the world dictate my joy level in Jesus name Amen.

HE FILLS YOU UP

"Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Luke 6:21 NIV

Do you know that you did absolutely nothing for God to make you His child? Yet, He said if you are hunger now - He will fill you. You are a blessed person if you’re hungry for the Truth, for Righteousness and for the Living God. Nothing in this world can fully satisfy a heart that has been made by God and made for God. Only God can give you all the satisfaction you will ever need. If you are hungry for Him then you are a blessed man.

Many are living their lives on the wrong things, such as alcohol, drugs and habits just because they are trying to fill a void, but unfortunately the more they try, the more it gets worse and worse. Some have tried several other ways to have peace and be fulfilled with life, but of no avail. The best and only way to fill any kind of void is when you allow God to fill you. He is the Only One whose fulfillment is guaranteed. No matter how deep the hole may be, God is the Best to fill you up.

I believe that deep in the heart of every man and woman on the face of the Earth, there is a missing link to our lives that can only be filled with the missing piece and that piece is a relationship with God. The Bible says in Isaiah 55:6 “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.” If you are going to fill whatever missing link, you have to genuinely seek His face and wholeheartedly call on Him for help. It’s a relationship and an everyday fellowship with Him. The promise of seeking God is that you will surely find Him. Try Him out, you will never regret it.

Further Scripture Study: Isaiah 58:11 

Declare This: Thank You Heavenly Father for Your love and the freedom to come to You. The more I seek You, the more I find You in Jesus name Amen.