by Rev Dunamis Okunowo | Jun 24, 2021 | Singles
Reading Time: 2 minutes
This morning, we will be looking at a couple of scriptures in 2 Corinthians 4
Verse 1:
Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not;
Okay, there is something we have to keep on seeing. “Seeing we have this ministry…” There is something we must keep in our perspective. It is the reason for the season. It is the reason for which God has laid on us individually. You see, you must come to a place where you have to lay hands on that which He has laid hold on you for. You have to keep on seeing the assignment; it is the big picture. It is that which you have to focus on.
The moment Abraham began to see something else, there were issues.
“And Abram said, Lord God, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless…” (Genesis 15:2a KJV)
What you see matters a lot. What you dwell on will either fill you with energy and enthusiasm or drain you and leave you dry and weak.
That verse goes on to say “as we have received mercy.”
That is powerful. We are all products of His mercy. You need to lift up your hand right now and say, “Lord, thank you for your mercy!” The mercies of God endureth forever. It is by His mercy that we have not been consumed. His word says “I will have mercy upon whom I will have mercy and I will have compassion upon whom I will have compassion.” Thank God because you are a child of His mercy. Jesus took His blood as an offering, He was the offering and the offerer, and He went ahead into the Holy of Holies and sprinkled His blood on the mercy seat!
That is why God has been merciful to you and I. When I make the most costly mistakes in which I think I am a goner, the blood of Jesus begins to speak mercy! That blood speaks better things!
And the next thing it says is “we faint not”
How come we must refuse to faint, get wearied or give up? Two things there,
1. Seeing what we have
2. We have received mercy
There is something I have because of His mercy. I must focus on that and refuse to cooperate with the devil’s antics to get me depressed!
Here is amplified version of verse 1
Therefore, since we do hold and engage in this ministry by the mercy of God [granting us favor, benefits, opportunities, and especially salvation], we do not get discouraged (spiritless and despondent with fear) or become faint with weariness and exhaustion
Make up your mind. The fact that you are not in a relationship yet, should not get you discouraged in any way. Why? The mercies of God will find and locate you. The fact that your courtship got broken and you are so discouraged about it all is not enough to make you stop going to worship in His presence. The fact that you have issues in your marriage should not leave you despondent with fear! God’s mercy is what we have received and that mercy will bail you out and dispel darkness in your life!
To be continued tomorrow
CONFESSION FOR THE DAY
I will see correctly. The light of God will dispel every darkness in me.
PRAYER FOR THE DAY
Lord, let your light dispel darkness in my life.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
ACTION PLAN FOR THE DAY
Meditate on God’s word.
BIBLE READING FOR THE DAY
1 Tim 3
by Rev Dunamis Okunowo | Jun 23, 2021 | Singles
Reading Time: 4 minutes
What do we do with all the things we have been learning, reading, and listening to? How do we become productive with all we have learnt? The Scripture rightly says that a man of knowledge increases strength. But again, the same scripture says that knowledge puffeth up! Where is the balance?
What do we do with knowledge so that it becomes strength?
1. Be a doer, not just a hearer
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. (James 1:22 KJV)
When we hear only without doing, the Bible says we are deceiving our own selves. Now, sincerely, that is not a good place to be. The greatest level of deception is when you deceive yourself!
If you heard in church that sleeping around is not good for you, don’t just hear that, be a doer by disconnecting from all sexual partners. That is when knowledge becomes wisdom, and that is when your strength is increased.
If you read in a book that life is about working principles, not just floating around, sit down and apply that to your life! It is one thing to acquire so many books and tapes, it is another thing entirely to sit down, eat those things and do them.
Those who hear and don’t act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like (James 1:23-24 Message)
Can you imagine that? Hearers who are not doers have identity issues. They don’t know themselves and they don’t know who they are in God!
2. Do not allow what you have learnt to slip
Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. (Hebrews 2:1 KJV)
You are asked to give more earnest heed. It means to keep a firm grip on what you have heard. Why? Because knowledge is slippery in nature! You can hear something in the service in the morning, and by afternoon if you are not careful, you have allowed it to slip carelessly.
So what do you do with what you hear? You keep a firm grip of that knowledge in your heart! How do you do that? If the heart has hands, it would just have been explicit on how to do that. The hands of your heart are stretched out in meditation. You place a firm grip on what you have heard when you meditate on that thing. That way, it becomes difficult to slip away.
Another thing you can do to keep a firm grip on what you have heard is to pray in the Spirit over that thing. It will take you to a higher level of understanding.
3. Marry the right person for you
God’s word in your life can be rendered unproductive when you align with the wrong person in your life. You cannot marry anybody and everybody. There is the right man for you and the right lady for you. Not every good person is meant for you. A good person might not be the right person for you. There is a difference between Mr. Right Now and Mr. Right!
The scripture talks about wicked men that walk with a froward mouth
The scripture talks about evil men whose mouth speak froward things
The scripture talks about evil men who leave the path of uprightness
The scripture talks about evil men who walk in the way of darkness
The scripture talks about evil men who rejoice to do evil
The scripture talks about evil men whose ways are crooked
The scripture talks about strange women who flattereth with her words
The scripture talks about strange women who forsake guides of their youth
The scripture talks about strange women who forgetteth the covenant of their God
The scripture talks about strange women whose house inclineth to death
Then the scripture talks about men that lie and cheat, women that deceive and nag, and so on and so forth.
What this means is that you don’t dabble into marriage like you are playing cards. You walk down the aisle deliberately knowing what you are doing with God’s help. You don’t fall in love with anybody because falling in love with the wrong person can snuff out your fire for the things of God. You don’t fall in love with a figure; you fall in love with a person and with God’s direction.
Getting the right person can be simple, sincerely. Just get busy for God and serve Him sincerely from the depths of your heart. Serve Him with your heart and with your substance. I have shared severally from my experience. I never for once had to pray about marriage. God actually interrupted me while I was serving him. I had postponed marriage or relationship till after school but God interrupted me while I was just serving Him and getting busy for Him. The reason I didn’t run after marriage was not that I was spiritual; I was just not interested! But God was interested! Just get busy for God!
Remember Adam had to fall into a deep sleep before Eve could be presented to him? Maybe you need to sleep and put your mind at rest and then see what God wants to do in your life! What if Adam had refused to sleep? He would have disallowed God from doing what He wanted to do. Let God interrupt you rather than you interrupting God!
I pray that God will grant you more understanding in Jesus name!
CONFESSION FOR THE DAY
The word works for me. I am an ardent stickler of the word.
PRAYER FOR THE DAY
Lord, help me to daily meditate on the word.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. (James 1:22 KJV)
ACTION PLAN FOR THE DAY
Meditate on a verse about marriage.
BIBLE READING FOR THE DAY
Psalms 130
by Rev Dunamis Okunowo | Jun 23, 2021 | Couples
Reading Time: 2 minutes
Yesterday, we started on the topic what a wife wants from her husband, and we listed four points that men ought to take note of.
We said a woman wants
1. A head, not a headache
2. A protector, not a manipulator
3. A caring husband, not a scary one, and
4. A praying husband, not a preying one.
Today, I will tell you two more things every wife wants from her husband.
5. A gardener, not a scavenger
Every woman is like a garden of treasures. When a gardener is through working on a garden, there is order. When a scavenger is through, there is disorder. A gardener nurtures, a scavenger ruptures! A gardener prepares the garden for productivity; a scavenger is looking for what’s in it for him. It is a whole world of difference! A scavenger wants to raid your garden and if as a single you are involved with one, it’s time you send him parking and close your gate!
6. A romantic husband, not a sarcastic one
Women love it when their husbands are romantic. All the things a man used to do and say while he is wooing them, they want it to continue. If the man is wise, he will oblige to that. Ladies don’t like abusive men, men who use them as joke objects all the time, identifying and poking at their weaknesses rather than emphasize their strengths! It is not a good idea when you are inspired to crack some dry jokes directed at your wife each time you see her!
You will lose her gradually doing that! Rather, learn her love language and speak that language! If what it will take for you to have a good home is to help her a little in the kitchen, then do it!
As a young couple, I would bathe our boys from when they were just four days old! My wife loved that, so I took it upon myself to do that for all the boys till they were old enough to take care of themselves. Those were the early years when I had not started writing devotionals and I had time in the mornings.
Now, that may not resonate with you, and your wife might not even want to trust you with a four-day-old baby, but find something you can do to make her happy! That is how to be a man!
May God bless our marriage.
CONFESSION FOR THE DAY
I receive the wisdom of God to advance my marriage
PRAYERS FOR THE DAY
Father, help me to be a husband indeed.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil. She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life (Proverbs 31:11-12 KJV)
ACTION PLAN FOR THE DAY
Support your spouse all the way.
BIBLE READING FOR THE DAY
Ps 128
by Rev Dunamis Okunowo | Jun 22, 2021 | Singles
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favour of the Lord. (Proverbs 18:22 KJV)
It is interesting to note that the scripture above says, He that findeth a wife, not a sister, not a girl, but a wife! In other words, you must be a wife material before being found.
You see, the scripture cannot be broken. It is the wife material that would be found, not any other thing! So the next question is how does one become a wife material?
First of all, we will attempt to answer that question by looking at what a wife material is not. Sometimes, you find out what something is by studying what it is not.
You are not a wife material when
1. You are lazy
When you read through who a virtuous woman is in the scriptures, you will know that laziness is not part of the virtue being described there. If you have doubts, go through Proverbs 31: 10 – 31. Listen to me, if you are lazy, you need to start working on that now, so that it will not affect your marriage eventually after marriage.
A good wife should Know how to cook. A good wife is a homemaker. Women are usually multipliers. Start to discipline yourself and learn the basic things.
It is not exactly like a wife should become the house help, and I am not advocating that the husband should do nothing at home. It’s so simple, a wife should not be lazy. How do you know you are lazy? Somebody would have told you! If your mum or dad has ever told you that you are lazy, it is true! Don’t argue, just say mum, how can I make adjustments? Be humble! Don’t wait for your husband to confirm that!
2. You are sleeping around
You are not a wife material when you are still sleeping around and you are generous with your body! It is a direct violation of God’s way of doing things and such a lifestyle will bring difficulties into your life. The way of the transgressor is hard! A wife material is not into “aristo!”
3. You are spiritually irresponsible
A wife material should develop herself spiritually. You need that spiritual maturity to help you balance your role as a wife-to-be, mother-to-be, and sometimes combining that with a vibrant career.
4. You are not accountable
Accountability is powerful. As a young lady, who are your mentors? Who are you accountable to? Who can you call on the phone when you have issues and you will get good counsel? Are you a tither? Do you honor God with your time and service? Are you serving in your local assembly?
5. You are selfish
A wife material is selfless. You don’t consider yourself alone! Marriage is about being selfless. Two people who are married and are selfish will soon crash their marriage. Marriage can only survive when the two people involved love themselves genuinely and are not selfish
6. You are already living with him
You are not a wife material by living in his house when you are not yet married. One of the marks of being a wife material is to respect your body and honor God with it. But when you are already involved in compromise repeatedly and without repentance, you are not really honoring your body!
Don’t travel over to meet him where he is and then spend days with him. If you do that, you will be sowing the wrong seeds into that relationship and you are not going to have God’s support and favor doing that.
What if you are already doing that? Park out of his house! You are not married!
What if I park out and he leaves me? Then he is not your husband!
Your husband will be willing to wait for you. That is how you carve some respect for yourself.
When you look at the concept of a “wife” in the scriptures, it says, you are a help meet for him. Your entrance into his life translates into favour for the family!
Are you preparing yourself in that regard? You see God is not an author of confusion, so He will not bring into your life what you are not ready for! Are you really ready for marriage? Do you love yourself? Are you really single in the sense of it? Have you gone past that stage where you are looking for someone to complete you?
It is a wife material that would be found. Not any other thing, so my challenge to ladies this morning is, are you a wife material?
I pray for you this morning, that God will open your eyes the more and help you to be better prepared, and to be found by your husband! You will be found in Jesus name! I curse every operation of the spirit of delay in your life and declare that God’s counsel over your life will stand in Jesus name!
CONFESSION FOR THE DAY
I receive the wisdom of God to prepare for my marriage
PRAYERS FOR THE DAY
Pray for wisdom to be all God wants you to be.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Prov 18:22 (NET) The one who finds a wife finds what is enjoyable, and receives a pleasurable gift from the Lord.
ACTION PLAN FOR THE DAY
Are you a wife material?
BIBLE READING FOR THE DAY
Ps 128
by Rev Dunamis Okunowo | Jun 22, 2021 | Couples
Reading Time: 3 minutes
Yesterday, we looked at what every man wants in his spouse that women need to pay attention to. Today, it’s the other way round, we’re looking at what a wife wants from her husband, so let’s go!
1. A head, not a headache
This is one of the vital things a wife wants from you. A man is supposed to be his wife’s head, not her headache. What is the head supposed to do? The eyes are located in the head, so one of the principal responsibilities of a man as the head is to cast a vision for the family and give direction as well. The mind is located in the head, so the man is supposed to be a thinker and be responsible.
Being the head does not mean she is subservient to you, for there is nothing the head can do alone. It is the body that holds the head and so the head needs the cooperation of the neck and the body to function in its assignment.
The husband provides leadership to his wife the way Christ does to his church, not by domineering but by cherishing. (Ephesians 5:23 Message)
There are some singles ladies in courtship that are already having sleepless nights by virtue of who they are involved with. This is not the plan of God for you, and when you see negative trends like that, the man is not likely to change after marriage. Don’t close your eyes to all the red lights because you want to get married desperately.
2. A protector, not a manipulator
A man is supposed to be the protector of the lady, even in a dating situation. But what is rampant today is a brazen display of manipulation and high degree insincerity. We have men today who are not really interested in marriage but just in jeru trip. A wife wants to feel safe and protected
As a lady, there is no point courting such a man because if you are not careful, he will soon have his way while you are left heartbroken. A manipulator knows how to feed your weaknesses just to get what he wants. A husband that manipulates knows how to logically blame the wife for everything.
3. A caring husband, not a scary one
There are wives that can’t talk in their matrimonial home. They are permanently muted. For such women, the fear of their husbands is the beginning of wisdom! There are even ladies who are in courtship and they have no say. Now, this is very defective and it is not God’s order! The man that loves God and loves his family does not scare. You don’t rule your home with an iron fist, you rule with love.
A situation where the boy is playing football, but upon hearing the blast of dad’s car horn, dives through the window, the wife rushes to the kitchen to get food ready…. all because the lion of the tribe of his house has come! Children raised in this kind of atmosphere always rebel in the end. Be caring, rather than be scary!
4. A praying husband, not a preying one
It will interest you to know that every lady wants a spiritual man. Every lady wants a man that will wake her up to pray. Every lady wants a man that can lay hands on her and bless her. Now, you don’t have to be a pastor to do that. You only need to have a relationship with God.
Tomorrow, I will show us more things a woman wants from her husband.
May God bless our marriage.
CONFESSION FOR THE DAY
I receive the wisdom of God to advance my marriage
PRAYERS FOR THE DAY
Father, help me to be a husband indeed.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil. She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life (Proverbs 31:11-12 KJV)
ACTION PLAN FOR THE DAY
Support your spouse all the way.
BIBLE READING FOR THE DAY
Ps 127
