Every marriage atone time or another will need the wine in the marriage to be renewed or replenish. This happens probably because we made more withdrawals than deposits in the emotional tank of each other.
Life happens and a times we get too busy or occupied with our tight schedules that we lag behind in the things that make our marriage sizzle. Maybe as a wife you have been busy with house chores, children , in laws, office work and you have been a liitle grouchy lately.
As a husband too, maybe you have been cranky lately with bills piling up and their deadline approaching or as a son to your parents you have responsibilities to fulfill or maybe your mechanic played a fast one on you and the list could be endless of different things that get us overwhelmed with life itself.
All these will eventually affect our marriage one way or the other.
In John 2:1-11 in the story of the Marriage at Cana in Galilee, we saw that at a particular point and time in the marriage the new finished. Thank God for Jesus being around at the marriage.
Jesus is the only solution for finished wine in our marriage. But Jesus alone did make it happen. Just as your being born again doesn’t guarantee the automatic renewal of the wine of your marriage.
In the marriage at Cana of Galilee, the key players are
1. Jesus Christ 2. The mother of Jesus 3. The Servants 4. The Bride and Groom 5. The chairman of the ceremony
For there to be renewal of your marriage wine you also need these people in your marriage.
1. Jesus Christ. – He is the Word. You need the word to be spoken over your marriage. You have to have an active relationship with the word and invite Jesus into your marriage.
2. The mother of Jesus. – you need people who care and are interested in you because they love you. They notice the little details of your life about your life and watch out for you. You have to give them the permission into your space.
They are like your mentor. This could also pass for the Holy spirit. Who nudges you that the wine in your marriage needs renewal.
3. The servants. –These are like your Protégées. They will do whatever you ask them to do. You must know how to manage them for the benefit of your marriage. Don’t let them become pain to you, they are gift. This could pass for your faculties you employ and yield in obedience to Jesus
4. The bride and groom. – they are the couples whose marriage the wine needs renewal. Their marriage can become beautiful again. They can be helped of God and become the envy of all people.
5. The chairman of the ceremony. – this stands for the unbelievers around who will witness and share in the joy of what the Lord has and can do in your marriage when invited.
May we always allow Jesus into our marriage. God bless our marriage.
CONFESSION FOR THE DAY The wine of my marriage will not finish. I receive divine refilling.
PRAYER FOR THE DAY Lord, help me to know when I need a refill.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY John 2:5 His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.
It takes the grace of God for you accept discipline with humility. The most natural way you would likely react would be to reject it instantly. Maybe, you spent longer than you should at a friend’s place and your mother grounds you.
“But, it was just 30 minutes” you say to her. Instantly your brows build up a storm on your face, your mouth shoots out, you fold your arms and turn an almost 180 degree away from your mother. This is not how to accept discipline with humility.
“Not just 30 minutes only, you also didn’t wash the dirty plates in the sink before you left,” your mum replies.
Just 30 minutes, but you stayed longer than you should and didn’t wash the plates also.
The first thing you should have said was “I am sorry, mummy.” That’s how to accept discipline with humility. That alone would first make your mother calm down.
“I will wash the plates immediately.” Another sentence that will douse the situation again. Then you can start to give your reasons for staying long, that is if they are tenable. If they are not don’t say anything. Accept discipline with humility.
Saying sorry is a sign of true humility. It shows you are sorry for your actions and are open to making amends for what you have done.
Here is what the bible says about people who are humble
“The Lord hates those who are proud. You can be sure that they will be punished. Psalms 149: 4 ICB.
“God is against the proud but he gives grace to the humble” James 4:6 ICB.
God doesn’t like pride because it is a sin. Pride in your salvation through Christ and as a God’s creation is good. Learn humility; accept discipline with humility.
Being proud is saying that you are above mistakes and therefore can’t and shouldn’t be corrected. As a child, you need to be always corrected.
May God give you a heart that is open to correction. Amen.
Prayer: Lord, give me the spirit of humility through Your Holy Spirit. Teach me to accept discipline with humility. In Your mighty name I pray, amen.
Action point: Remember to always apologise first before giving excuses.
It is the greatest miracle of all ages. After the miracle of resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, it is the next greatest mystery of all times. The worshipped will live in the worshipper! The Trinity became domiciled in humanity! It’s unheard of, but that was what happened.
It is the believer’s greatest advantage which has been provided. It is the greatest synergy that will ever happen between the divine and the humane. This mortal body of ours will become an abode, a milieu to the Spirit, not just any spirit, but the Holy Spirit! He is the helper. He is the interpreter of scriptures. He is our teacher. He brings understanding. He empowers us. He energizes us. He reveals. He explains. He dissolves puzzles of life. He demystifies enigmas!
2Co 4:7 KJV But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the Excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
He teaches us all things. He helps me to write fresh word on KHC devotional everyday, since 2010, without fail, with amazing testimonies of lives touched around the world. He brings this devotionals to you and makes it applicable to you in a unique way. One write up daily, several lives blessed, shackles broken, sexual perversion destroyed! Help provided!
He helps you to decide. He helps you to identify the right persons and the wrong persons. His name is the Holy Spirit! He lives in you. He propels you. He moves you!
He was the secret strength behind the exploits of the patriarchs and the prophet of old! He was the secret behind the parted sea, the plagues unleashed on the Egyptians, the sun that stood still, the force behind the stone that felled Goliath, the exploits of Elijah and his protégé, Elisha and so many others too numerous to mention. He was the secret behind Samson!
Jdg 13:25 KJV And the Spirit of the LORD began to move him at times in the camp of Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.
As long as the Spirit of God moved Samson, his hands wrought unimaginable exploits. If you will be outstanding in this generation as a child of God, you should not joke with the Holy Spirit of God.
Jesus had to wait for Him to come before his ministry took shape and the miracles began. The apostles had to tarry for him to come and be endued with power from on high before their ministry exploded. But today, we don’t even have to tarry for him, we only need to receive him.
He helps us to resist sin. He helps us to say No to compromise. He brings light to darkened areas of our souls. His sweet voice is an elixir and a soothing balm in difficult and painful times. His peace enraptures and preserves us in the midst of storms.
You cannot do without him. That is why he has been provided. He makes Christianity exciting. He eliminates frustrations and helps to say “Abba Father!”
Samson took him for granted, and his destiny was terminated. It was that profound. You have been configured as a child of God to survive with His help. When you ignore him, you suffer for it.
It is not wise to ignore your maker. You will simply be ‘unmade’ like that! When he departed from King Saul, he transitioned from royalty to madness!
It is high time you get filled with the Holy Ghost. It is high time you tap into the vast reserve of divine and incredible power that is available for you as a child of God. It is high time you initiate a conscious and deliberate relationship with the Spirit of God.
Samson’s end came with one sobering statement! Don’t ever get to that spot in your life! Don’t ever dance in that forbidden zone! What is that statement?
Jdg 16:20 KJV And she said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him.
Sinful lifestyle, unrepentant attitude, taking God’s grace for granted, undisciplined life, and lack of self-control got Samson to this spot!
The Spirit of God has departed and he didn’t know! How many people are simply going through the motions, both in the laity and the clergy, in the pews and he pulpits, shaking themselves as before, but in reality, they are disenfranchised for the Holy Spirit because of sin, disobedience, and compromise.
Before the philistines lay their hands on you, while you are frolicking on Delilah’s laps, wake up and take charge of your destiny! If the philistines lay their hands on you, the first thing they are going for is your eyes, where the scriptures makes no more meaning and the conscience is seared!
Get back to a relationship with the Holy Spirit today. Stay away form sin and compromise, and let God begin a new thing in your life, relationship and marriage.
I pray for God’s help for you this day, this week in Jesus name!
CONFESSION FOR THE DAY I will not be disconnected from my Help provided in Jesus name
PRAYER FOR THE DAY I pray for God’s wisdom in the area where help has been provided for in Jesus name
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth:for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak:and he will shew you things to come. (John 16:13 KJV)
ACTION PLAN FOR THE DAY Write out your goals about your relationship with the Holy Spirit.
Jer 33:1-3 KJV (1) Moreover the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was yet shut up in the court of the prison, saying, (2) Thus saith the LORD the maker thereof, the LORD that formed it, to establish it; the LORD is his name; (3) Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
This is what I love about the God’s word. The word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah… Here, it is like saying a human being walks up to you…but actually, God’s word is more tangible than a human. The word of God is life…it is alive and it is the source of every life. It is that same word that became flesh and dwelt among us!
You see, the word of the Lord will always come and that is the beginning of good things in your life and the end of unpalatable experiences. The word of the Lord….let it come unto you daily before you leave your room, before you step out into your daily endeavor, it is the secret of life! Before you see the dawn of the day, and step out into the early morning sunshine, let the word of God light your soul in its blazing Shekinah glory!
And you see, the word of the Lord was not just coming unto Jeremiah…the scripture says it came unto him the second time…. God is a God of the second chance, and the third chance and the fourth chance and until you get it! He will come to you again and again because of His loving kindness and mercy…to you out there reading this…don’t back out on God, for He will lovingly embrace you when you respond to His word. You are not too far-gone; don’t allow the devil to deceive you. God will embrace the vilest of sinners that come unto Him and wash them clean as white as snow!
I then I love this… “…while he was yet shut up in the court of the prison. The word of God is not location-limited or circumstance-hindered. It does not discriminate and it does not play politics! It is not partial or biased. There is no distance in the realm of the spirit. That word came unto Jeremiah while he was still locked up.
Do you feel locked up and confused in a relationship? Do you feel barred and busted? The word of the Lord is what will free you. For you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.
In that situation that looks very bleak, what you need to get you out is the word of God. In those situations, the last thing your flesh wants to do is to read or study God’s word. Your flesh wants to panic, cry, gossip, rant, complain and play the blame-game. It wants to get depressed and have some pity-party.
But you see, in such situations, you cannot allow your body to dictate to you. You must put your body under by diving into God’s word to hear what He will say unto you.
You see, whatever you are facing right now, whatever imbroglio you find yourself, whatever relationship issue or marriage pressure that faces you, one thing guaranteed to sort you out is to know God’s word. And that word will come unto wherever you are. Joseph was in the prison until the word of God tried him. That word will dissolve every puzzle and unravel every enigma.
You are confused as to the choice of who to marry? Get back into God’s word for in Him is life and the life is the light of men! The life gives you energy to go the way that the light will show you.
Verse 3 says
Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
Message translation says:
Jer 33:3 MSG ‘Call to me and I will answer you. I’ll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own.’
You see, there are things about your life, relationship and marriage you can never figure out on your own. You don’t often see beyond your nose. Your sight is often terminated by the horizon.
There are deceivers. A handsome man is not always a God loving man. A rich man is not always a nice man. A wicked man can be mercifully cruel! A beautiful woman can be a strange woman. The bible talks about a beautiful face on an empty head! How do you figure out some of these things?
The first thing is that the word of God must come unto you. The second thing is that you learn to call unto Him and He will answer you! The question is will it be that easy? Just call Him and then the next thing is that He will answer? This is the way I want you to see it. When you call a stranger, you’re introduce yourself first. When you call a friend, he already has your number and sometimes, you don’t even greet him or her before you say what you want to say. The scripture above is obviously one of a friendship, a relationship with God.
Call unto me, and I will answer… It didn’t say, “Call unto me, and introduce yourself and then I will consult my angel to find out who you are…”
It’s just like “Call unto me, and I will answer! Why? The background is that the word of the Lord already came unto you. There is already a relationship! It is on that premise that you call unto Him and He will answer you!
I pray for you this morning that even as you read this, the word of the Lord will come unto you to lift you out every miry clay and set you foot upon the mountain. You will overcome that challenge by the word of God.
You are not condemned because of that mistake; the word of God will come unto you and make you a new specie! You will not be cut off in the midst of your days. The very thing you need to know this day, God’s word will bring it unto you! Stop crying, wipe the tears off and get into God’s word! CONFESSION FOR THE DAY I am a lover of God’s word. I have what it takes to know and live the word.
PRAYER FOR THE DAY Pray that God will help you to know the Word
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1 KJV)
ACTION PLAN FOR THE DAY Study a book on how to know God’s plan for your life
Now that you know what you should do, do it! Do what you should do! What is the change that you need to embrace? What is that thing or those things you need to start doing?
Knowing what to do and not doing it is a sin. Look at it here in the book of James
“And when a person knows the right thing to do, but does not do it, then he is sinning.” James 4:17 ICB.
Refusing to do the right thing shows both arrogance and ignorance of the things of God. Like we learnt in the last post that God hates the proud, God also hates feigned ignorance. So do what you should do.
Sometimes you can pretend to be ignorant of what you are supposed to do so as to fool the other person. You may fool the person, but not God. Remember that He knows and sees all things.
You are also telling God that you are not a sinner and saying God is a liar. But God doesn’t lie
If we say that we have not sinned, then we make God a liar. We do not accept God’s true teaching. 1 John 1:10 ICB
Making the changes that are needed is a sign that you value and respect the other person. Therefore learn to do what you should do.
When you apologise and start to do what you have promised to do, it builds more love between you and the other person. It also speaks well about you. You are seen as truly repentant and humble.
A word of caution though – don’t just do what you should do because you are asked to. Do it because it is the right thing to do. Don’t do it physically while in your heart you are rebelling, grumbling and hating every minute of what you are doing.
