LIVING WORD FOR TODAY

Daily Devotional Guide - by Pastor Vincent Imwensi WEEK 1

Please Note

AUGUST 2011
HOW TO USE THIS DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE FOR BEST RESULTS:

August-1
Ezra 8:1-36

First, read the given passage for the day. Meditate on it and let God minister to you personally. Then read and ponder on the given comment for the day as an additional bonus. The daily comments are not intended to be a substitute for your own personal daily study of Gods word. So use it right and be richly blessed. Ezra bragged to the king (Cyrus) that his God (that is our God) was able to deliver and help those who trust in Him but then he had to do what was needed for God to intervene. They fasted and prayed and God answered them. It is not enough to know or declare what God is able to do but knowing what we must do (and doing it) to get God to do like he has promised is even more important!

August-2
Song 2:1-17

Indeed, it is the little foxes that spoil the vine. Don't ignore the little things but rather take care of them. Ignoring some "little things" is like ignoring a little hole in your car tyre. Before you know it, the air has leaked out and you are left with a flat tyre which can get you stranded in the middle of nowhere! God is our Father but He is also our Lord (or Master). As our Father, He deserves our honour or reverence and as our Master, He deserves our (godly) fear. Our relationship with God must contain these two elements for it to be balanced. On one hand, we love and honour Him but on the other hand, we fear and obey Him. When a believer walks this way, it is difficult to miss it. It appears the fear of God is not a popular topic in Churches these days but we need it. Many people think that everyone is a child of God but that is not correct. We are all creatures of God but to become a child of God, you need to receive Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord. It says in verse 12 of today's passage that as many as receive Him, to them He gives power to become the sons (or children) of God. If someone needs to become a child of God, it means he was not a child of before he becomes one. Friend, make sure you are born again - that is the only way to become a child of God. We become God's children by a simple act of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It is not by our good works, keeping religious rituals or humanistic principles of "goodness". Simply believe that Jesus Christ dies to pay for your sins, repent of your sinful lifestyle and ask Him to become your Saviour and you will be saved or born again - it is as simple as that. If you are not yet saved, why not turn to the Lord today and get saved? God cannot lie therefore His promises are totally reliable. Sometimes, you could be believing God's promise and the very opposite will be happening as though God's word is not true. Don't be deceived or confused by that - keep standing on God's word and He will confirm His word. He never fails and His word will never prove to be a lie, praise God! Make no mistake about this - God will judge sin and sinners who fail to repent. We are in the period of grace right now where God's hands are wide-opened to all sinners. He is calling out and reaching out in His love, waiting to forgive and save anyone that will believe the saving gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. But a time will come - not very long from now when He will bring down His righteous judgment upon all who refused to believe the gospel and get saved. It is not going to be funny. Therefore make sure you are saved while you still have the time turn to the Saviour today if you have not already done so.

August-3
Mal.1:1-14

August-4
John 1:1-51

August-5
Gal.3:1-29

August-6
Titus 1:1-16

August-7
2Thess.2:1-12

Courtesy: Living Word Revival Ministries, (London, United Kingdom) Contact: info@lwrm.org.uk Tel: 0208 5390504; Website: www.lwrm.org.uk

LIVING WORD FOR TODAY - Daily Devotional Guide - by Pastor Vincent Imwensi

WEEK 2
August-8
Neh.4:1-20

AUGUST 2011
Each time you rise up to do that which will glorify God, there will be Sanballats and Tobiahs (God's enemies) that will try to frustrate you. Refuse to be discouraged and do not give in to any sabotage of the enemy but rather be strong and of good courage. You are not alone in that battle - God is with you and with Him on your side, you can never lose. There is victory and testimony ahead of you. Here is a big question "Can two walk together except they be agreed?" The answer of course is 'NO' Agreement is very important for any meaningful progress. But as a child of God, you need to be careful who you walk with. If you walk with the ungodly, you may be forced to compromise with their ungodliness along the way. It is those who do not walk in the counsel of the ungodly that are blessed don't forget that. Every God-given vision has an appointed time. At the fullness of that time, it will speak or manifest. Therefore, we must learn to wait on our vision till the appointed time comes. The temptation is there to beat the gun and try to take on the vision when its time has not yet come. This often leads to frustration. It also possible to become careless and casual about it such that the appointed comes and goes without the individual realizing it. Therefore wait on your God-given vision dont beat the gun and dont miss your train! All the promises of God find their "yes and amen" in Christ Jesus. That is to say that Jesus is the seal of approval upon every promise that God has ever made. In Him they are confirmed and through Him, they are released into manifestation. It doesn't matter who the promise was made to, you can claim it by faith in Christ Jesus and it will be stamped "yes" for you - praise God forevermore. God the Father has raised our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and set Him far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come. That means, the devil and all his hosts are far below Jesus. That means also that everyone in Christ Jesus is far above the devil. Even if you are the least person in Christ, you are still far above the devil. Therefore recognize who you are in Christ and walk in your authority. The devil shouldn't be frightening you; it should be the other way round! Here is the key behind the steadfastness of the Thessalonian believers - they did not receive the word of God as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God. And the result was that the word they received worked effectively in their lives causing them to be fruitful and strong in faith. This same principle will produce the same results in the life of anyone that will do the same. Receive God's word and treat it as the word of God and not the word of man. The deity of our Saviour Jesus Christ is unveiled in this chapter. He is the Son of God, the express image of God the Father. He upholds the entire creation and all things by the word of His power. He is seated on the right hand of the Majesty on high far higher than the angels. He laid the foundation of the earth and the heavens are the works of His hands. When the time comes, He will fold them up and replace them with a new heaven and a new earth but He remains the ever living and everlasting God. He is our Saviour having purged our sins by Himself. This is the wonderful One we call Jesus Christ who indwells every saved soul by His Holy Spirit praise God! God is watching over His word to perform it. Once He has spoken it, He will bring it to pass. We see in this chapter how He stirred up the spirit of an ungodly king (Cyrus) to fulfil His prophetic word by the mouth of Jeremiah. Let us pray that God would stir up the hearts of the leaders in our nation, and of the ungodly as well as the righteous to fulfil His counsel for our day and time. If He did it before, He can do it again. Lets ask Him to do it again so that His purpose can be fulfilled in our time. Courtesy: Living Word Revival Ministries, (London, United Kingdom) Contact: info@lwrm.org.uk Tel: 0208 5390504; Website: www.lwrm.org.uk

August-9
Amos 3:1-15

August-10
Habk.2:1-20

August-11
2Cor.1:1-24

August-12
Eph.1:1-23

August-13
1Thess.2:1-20

August-14
Heb.1:1-14

August-15
Ezra 1:1-11

LIVING WORD FOR TODAY - Daily Devotional Guide - by Pastor Vincent Imwensi

WEEK 3
August-16
Song 4:1-16

AUGUST 2011
Romantic love is God's idea and it is wonderful that the word of God did not shy away from it but rather devoted a whole book (Songs) to it. It is to be enjoyed and celebrated with excitement. There is nothing impure or unholy in romantic love as long as it is kept within the boundaries of holy matrimony. It is when people who are not married indulge in lustful and immoral relationships that God frowns at it. If you are married, be romantic; celebrate your love with your spouse! Giving God a tenth of your income (your tithe) opens the windows of heaven to you and triggers the release of God's blessing. The devourer is also rebuked on your behalf. If you are believer and you do not tithe, you are doing yourself more harm than you realize. Tithing is not to be classified under the laws of Moses because it started before the law (Gen.14:20). In the New Testament, Jesus did not condemn tithing - He said it should be done (Luke 11:42). Therefore do yourself a favour start tithing to your local church if you are not already doing so. This chapter contains what I consider to be the shortest and most powerful sermon in the whole Bible. It was preached by Mary, the mother of Jesus to the servants at the wedding feast. Here it is: "Whatever He says to you, do it." There is no greater key to getting miraculous intervention than this to do whatever the Lord tells us to do in our situations. Two important things follow - the first is to hear precisely what the Lord says to do and the second is to do it. Miracles will follow each time this is done. The law of sowing and reaping is so powerful that it determines which way our lives go. Whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap. What we do, say, think, give, or fail to, are all seeds that we sow. No one can avoid this law - it catches up with everyone. In fact, doing nothing is a seed and has its own harvest. But we can turn this law to work in our favour every time by committing ourselves to sowing only the right seeds all the time. That is easy to do by walking in the spirit and living according to Gods word by the power of the Holy Spirit. The point has already been made that we are not saved by good works or morality. However, that does not mean that good works or good moral conduct have no place in the lives of believers. Indeed, the reverse is the case - we are expected to demonstrate good morality and conduct as the fruit of our lives in Christ. We are not saved by good works but we are saved unto good works. Therefore as believers, our conduct must be an example worthy of emulation. In today's passage, we are reminded of "the man of sin, the son of perdition" that will be revealed someday. This is talking about the anti-Christ. Right now, the stage is being set for his arrival on the world scene. When he shows up, serving God is going to be considered a criminal offence. The person keeping him from manifesting right now is the Holy Spirit who is presently at work in the body of Christ. But after the rapture has taken place, the door will be thrown open to the anti-Christ. Dear friend, are you saved and rapture ready? It is not going to be funny when the anti-Christ shows up. Get ready to leave here the moment the trumpet sounds! Whatever you do for the Lord will be remembered for ever. The names of those who participated in the building of the temple of God are listed in this chapter. The temple referred to has long been destroyed but the names of the builders remain in the records. What are you doing for the Lord? What role are you playing in the business of advancing God's kingdom on earth today? Be wise; commit yourself to the service of the Lord. This is your chance to offer to God a service that will be remembered for all eternity, don't miss it. "For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live" God is to be sought after and seeking after Him leads to life and opens the door to manifold blessings. Those who live as if they don't need God in their lives are making a big mistake. How do we seek God? By repenting of every evil and walking in obedience to His word; by being regular in His house (Church); by prayer, fasting and personal consecration; by committing ourselves to spiritual growth and godliness of character and conduct. Yes, let's seek Him wholeheartedly every day. There is a sure reward for doing so. Courtesy: Living Word Revival Ministries, (London, United Kingdom) Contact: info@lwrm.org.uk Tel: 0208 5390504; Website: www.lwrm.org.uk

August-17
Mal.3:1-18

August-18
John 2:1-25

August-19
Gal.6:1-18

August-20
Titus 2:1-15

August-21
2Thess.2:1-17

August-22
Neh.3:1-32

August-23
Amos 5:1-27

LIVING WORD FOR TODAY - Daily Devotional Guide - by Pastor Vincent Imwensi

WEEK 4
August-24
Hab.3:1-19

AUGUST 2011
Coming to a point in our walk with God where He becomes our sufficiency and joy in every situation, is what every child of God should strive to attain to. Then we will be able to say what Habakkuk said in last verses of todays chapter and mean it: Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labour of the olive may fail, And the fields yield no food; Though the flock may be cut off from the fold, And there be no herd in the stalls, Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. When you get this point, nothing moves you! In our day and time, disciplining a believer for misconduct in church has become out-dated especially in "Western churches". Not only will such people leave the church and go and join another one, some believers in the church will team up with them to castigate the man of God for doing so. And yet this is the word of God which was practised in the early church. The funny thing is, we dream of walking in the power and anointing of the Holy Ghost like they did but are not willing to walk like they did. Is it any wonder the church is the way it is today? May be it is high time we think on our ways and repent. Oh, thank God for His grace (unmerited favour)! By grace, we are saved through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. It is not by our own works of righteousness. Before God's grace found us, we were dead in trespasses and sins and we by nature the children of wrath under controlling power of the devil himself. But in Christ Jesus, we found deliverance and have now become partakers of the goodness of God, destined for His glory and are now citizens of His kingdom. Take out time today to thank God for His grace upon your life for without it, we done for. It is so important that more matured believers keep a watchful eye on those who are younger in the faith. This should be in order to help them to be properly established and grow in the faith. Such follow-up will also ensure that the adversary does not usurp their faith in the Lord through his numerous cunning devices. Yes, we must be mindful of and look out for the newer believers and be ready to help them in every way we can to help them grow stronger in the Lord. "But exhort one another daily, while it is called "TODAY," lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin" Receiving God's word on daily basis is very important. Without it, hardness of heart will gradually creep in. This is how some believers ended up backsliding. Make it a point of duty to keep your spirit and soul under running waters of God's word every day. This is one reason why a Daily Devotional Guide like this is so vital as it takes you to God's word every day. Sanballat and his cohorts having failed in their various attempts to frustrate Nehemiah and stop the work God assigned him to do, now decided to change tactics. This time around they proposed friendship to Nehemiah which he aptly rejected. Be careful when your sworn enemy suddenly wants to become your friend. It is often a trap and many have fallen by it. Under such a pretended friendship, it is very easy to let guards down which is what your new "friend" is looking for. Beware. If you are going to walk in victory as a believer, you must learn to walk in the Spirit rather than in the flesh. There is no victory walking in the flesh. The Holy Spirit is in you to help you to walk in victory but you must yield totally to Him and to the word of God. Commit yourself to doing God's word always and take a firm stand against sinful invitations or allurements. Always remind yourself that your old nature is crucified with Christ it is no longer in control of your life, you are now led by the Spirit of God. Therefore refuse to obey the old nature. The Spirit of God will help you if you yield to Him. According to this short chapter, the end of all ungodly people is frightfully horrible but the end of the righteous is beautifully glorious. While the wicked (or the ungodly) will be burning in unquenchable fire, the righteous (or the saved) will be basking in Gods eternal glory, shinning forth as the light of the sun. If you are saved, commit yourself to telling others about the Saviour. Do all you can to help the lost to turn to the Saviour. If you are not saved, you need to turn to the Saviour now before it is forever too late. God does not want you to perish but the choice remains yours. Courtesy: Living Word Revival Ministries, (London, United Kingdom) Contact: info@lwrm.org.uk Tel: 0208 5390504; Website: www.lwrm.org.uk

August-25
2Cor.2:1-17

August-26
Eph.2:1-22

August-27
1Thess.3:1-13

August-28
Heb.3:1-19

August-29
Neh.6:1-19

August-30
Gal.5:1-26

August-31
Mal.4:1-6