Open Heaven For Today 2024 Friday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – A Call To Diligence
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TOPIC: A Call To Diligence
MEMORISE:-"The hand of the diligent shall bear rule: but the slothful shall be under tribute". Proverbs 12:24
READ: Acts 28:1-6 (KJV)
1 And when they were escaped, then they knew that the island was called Melita.
2 And the barbarous people shewed us no little kindness: for they kindled a fire, and received us every one, because of the present rain, and because of the cold.
3 And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand.
4 And when the barbarians saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, they said among themselves, No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live.
5 And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm.
6 Howbeit they looked when he should have swollen, or fallen down dead suddenly: but after they had looked a great while, and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds, and said that he was a god.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deuteronomy 5-8
Open Heaven For Today 2023 MESSAGE
When I realised that if God hadn’t found me, I would have remained as a university lecturer heading towards hell, I made up my mind not to be an ordinary Christian.
A mathematician who doesn’t want to be ordinary will study those who excelled and reached the top, like Pythagoras and other great mathematicians.
As I didn’t want to be an ordinary Christian, I spent three years studying some people who God used mightily.
One of such was Elijah. If you have listened to my series of sermons titled ‘Going Higher’ (they can be found on Dove TV’s YouTube channel) you will know that l have spent a lot of time studying Elijah.
I also studied Paul because he was an academic, a professor of law that went into ministry like me and ended well. I found out that according to 2 Timothy 4:6-8, he was a diligent man.
Paul was diligent in every facet of his life. In Acts 28:1-6, when there was a shipwreck on the Island of Malta, while everyone was gathered around the fire because of the cold, it was Paul who went out to fetch firewood.
In the earlier days, during the RCCG conventions, my boys and l used to fetch firewood for the conventions.
We also washed plates and did other menial work with joy.
Whenever it was time to wash plates and anyone wanted to collect the sponge from me, I would tell them, “Wash your own portion of plates, let me wash mine.”
The hands that cannot do manual labour for the kingdom cannot heal the sick.
When a programme is going on in your church, do not shy away from doing menial work.
Get your hands dirty, and you will be amazed how the anointing will begin to surge through your fingers.
Many of the Assistant General Overseers in RCCG now were my boys in those days.
This is because it is those you knew to be diligent when you were starting out that you can trust to remain diligent when you are successful.
I have seen people advise that there are lots of people with great callings these days. They may have a calling, but have they been tested? Your calling is never enough to succeed.
Can we put you in charge of something and go to sleep knowing that you will do the work as it should be done?
Only those who are diligent can make full proof of their calling.
Key Point
A calling without diligence will yield no success.
HYMN 4:– To The Work! To The Work! We Are Servants of God
1 To the work! to the work! we are servants of God,
Let us follow the path that our Master has trod;
With the might of His power our strength to renew,
Let us do by His grace what He calls us to do.
Work for Him by His grace;
Work thru Him for His praise;
Work with Him all the days;
And work in Him in many ways.
2 To the work! to the work! let the hungry be fed;
To the fountain of life let the thirsty be led;
In the cross and its vict’ry our glory shall be,
While we herald the tidings, “Salvation is free!”
3 To the work! to the work! in the strength of the Lord,
By the pow’r of His Name, with the light of His Word,
All the slaves of the darkness of Satan set free
And His riches of grace in His glory we’ll see.
Open Heaven For Today 2024 Thursday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – Where Will You End Up?
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TOPIC: Where Will You End Up?
MEMORISE:-"Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit". Ecclesiastes 7:8
READ: Luke 16:19-31(KJV)
19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
20 And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
21 And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house:
28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deuteronomy 3-4
Open Heaven For Today 2023 MESSAGE
Many people that are living in the world today are carried away by the pleasures of sin.
They think they are living the life now, but they have forgotten that they should be more concerned with their end than their present state.
The time we have on earth is like a passing wind.
There is a place where everyone will report to when they close their eyes in death, and we will all be in that place for eternity.
My question to you now is, when you get to eternity, on what side will you be, on the side of heaven or hell?
The Bible says that when the Lord shall return, He is going to separate the people into two; the sheep will be on His right-hand side and the goats on the left (Matthew 25:31-46).
Ask yourself sincerely,
“Which side of God will I be at the end?”
It is not where I am now that matters most, but where I will end up in eternity.
One reason I am not afraid of death is because I am sure that dying in this world only gives me access to the eternal presence of God in heaven.
If you are not sure where you will go when you leave this world, then you should be afraid of death.
The interesting thing is, whether you fear death or not, everyone has an appointment with it that cannot be missed.
When that day comes, I hope you will be on the right-hand side of God.
If you are standing for God now, please keep standing.
Pray to God that He keeps you standing unto the end because it doesn’t matter how long anyone may have served God, if he backslides and death catches up with him in his backslidden state, he will perish in hell as we see in Ezekiel 18:24:
But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die.
On the other hand, someone may have been a sinner all his life, but close to when he is to die, if he repents and begins to live like Christ, that fellow will make it to heaven at the end (Ezekiel 18:21-22).
It is only those who endure unto the end that will be saved (Matthew 24:13).
Prayer Point
Father, Jude 1:24 says that You are the One that can keep a person from falling. Please keep me standing unto the end, in Jesus’ name.
HYMN 28:– Guide me, O Thou Great Jehovah
1. Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah,
Pilgrim through this barren land.
I am weak, but Thou art mighty;
Hold me with Thy powerful hand.
Bread of heaven,
Feed me now and evermore;
Bread of heaven,
Feed me now and evermore.
2. Open now the crystal fountain,
Whence the healing waters flow;
Let the fire and cloudy pillar
Lead me all my journey through.
Strong Deliverer,
Be Thou still my Strength and Shield.
Strong Deliverer,
Be Thou still my Strength and Shield.
3. When I tread the verge of Jordan,
Bid my anxious fears subside;
Death of death, and hell's destruction,
Land me safe on Canaan's side.
Songs of praises, I will ever give to Thee;
Songs of praises, I will ever give to Thee.
Ending
Land me safe on Canaan's side
Bid my anxious fears, bid my anxious fears
Land me safe on Canaan's side
Bid my anxious fears, bid my anxious fears, goodbye
Open Heaven For Today 2024 Wednesday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – The Right Hand of God
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TOPIC: The Right Hand of God
MEMORISE:-"According to thy name, O God, so is thy praise unto the ends of the earth: thy right hand is fuIl of righteousness". Psalm 48:10
READ: Psalm 89:8-13(KJV)
8 O Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee?
9 Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
10 Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.
11 The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: as for the world and the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them.
12 The north and the south thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name.
13 Thou hast a mighty arm: strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Deuteronomy 1-2
Open Heaven For Today 2023 MESSAGE
I have come to understand that the difference between the right and the left hand is more than their positioning on our bodies.
For example, in Matthew 5:30 when Jesus was talking about everything you must do to make sure you don’t miss heaven, He said,
“If thy right hand offend thee…”
He could easily have said,
“If thy hand,”
but He obviously emphasised the right hand because of its importance.
In Genesis 48:8-20 when Jacob was to bless Joseph’s two sons, he deliberately placed his right hand on the younger son and the left on the older son.
As a result of this, the younger son became more blessed than his elder brother (Deuteronomy 33:17).
Now, if the right hand of a man is that powerful, then you can imagine how powerful God’s right hand is since we were made in His image (Genesis 1:26).
Psalm 17:7 says that God saves by His right hand. In other words, when a sinner is snatched from the jaws of hell, it is God’s right hand at work.
This is why you must pray for God to raise His right hand on behalf of all your family members that are not saved.
Furthermore, Psalm 139:10 says that He leads by His right hand. Isaiah 41:10 says that God also upholds with His right hand.
After He has saved you and led you with His right hand, He will also keep you standing with the same right hand.
In Exodus 15:6, the Bible says that His right hand is not just powerful, but also glorious in power.
This tells us that God fights with His right hand. In Exodus 15:11-12, the Bible says that His right hand swallowed the enemy.
In Mark 14:62, the Bible tells us that the right hand of God is the right hand of power.
The right hand of God is also where you will find joy and everlasting pleasures (Psalm 16:11).
Beloved, you should note, however, that only the redeemed can be at the right hand of God (Matthew 25:34).
If you are not yet born again, you better surrender your life to Christ now because those who are at God’s left hand suffer greatly.
They are the ones who weep and gnash their teeth because of the evils they experience.
Give your life to Christ today and get on the right-hand side of God.
Prayer Point
Father, please raise Your right hand on my behalf and let every enemy fighting against me be destroyed, in Jesus’ name.
HYMN 1:– All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name
1 All hail the power of Jesus’ name!
Let angels prostrate fall.
Bring forth the royal diadem,
and crown him Lord of all.
Bring forth the royal diadem,
and crown him Lord of all!
2 Let highborn seraphs tune the lyre,
and as they tune it, fall
Before His face Who tunes their choir,
and crown Him Lord of all.
Before His face Who tunes their choir,
and crown Him Lord of all.
3 Crown Him, ye morning stars of light,
Who fixed this floating ball;
Now hail the strength of Israel’s might,
and crown Him Lord of all.
Now hail the strength of Israel’s might,
and crown Him Lord of all.
4 Crown Him, ye martyrs of your God,
Who from His altar call;
Extol the stem of Jesse’s Rod,
and crown Him Lord of all.
Extol the stem of Jesse’s Rod,
and crown Him Lord of all.
5 Ye seed of Israel’s chosen race,
ye ransomed from the fall,
Hail Him who saves you by his grace,
and crown Him Lord of all.
Hail Him who saves you by his grace,
and crown Him Lord of all!
6 Hail Him, ye heirs of David’s line,
Whom David Lord did call,
The God incarnate, Man divine,
and crown Him Lord of all.
The God incarnate, Man divine,
and crown Him Lord of all.
7 Sinners, whose love can ne’er forget
the wormwood and the gall,
Go spread your trophies at His feet,
and crown Him Lord of all.
Go spread your trophies at His feet,
and crown Him Lord of all.
8 Let every tribe and every tongue
before Him prostrate fall,
And shout in universal song,
and crown him Lord of all.
And shout in universal song,
and crown him Lord of all.
Open Heaven For Today 2024 Tuesday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – What Did God Say?
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TOPIC:What Did God Say?
MEMORISE:-"I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved". Habakkuk 2:1
READ: Psalm 119:101-105(KJV)
101 I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word.
102 I have not departed from thy judgments: for thou hast taught me.
103 How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!
104 Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way.
105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Numbers 33-36
Open Heavens 20 February 2024 MESSAGE:
To live and survive on this earth, you need more than food.
Jesus said in Matthew 4:4 that you need every single word that proceeds out of God’s mouth.
This implies that you must be very particular about hearing from God regularly.
Many people think that prayer is a one-way traffic, that is, they go to God, tell Him all their problems, and that is all.
No!
The most important part of prayer is hearing what God has to say concerning situations.
It is the entrance of His word that brings light (Psalm 119:130).
Many times, when I face a difficult situation, and I cry to God for help and he does not say anything back to me, I say, “I’m in trouble,” and I continue crying unto Him.
When at last I hear from Him, then I know that the problem is over.
Even if what I hear is a rebuke, the fact that He is answering at all shows that He has heard me and that something is going to happen.
The Bible recorded in 1 Samuel 30:1-18 how David and his men had lost their family members and possessions to the Amalekites and how they recovered all after seeking guidance from God.
It was a very dark moment for them before God spoke to them.
The men had cried themselves sore and were so dejected that they began to contemplate killing David.
Thankfully, David acted wisely and sought the face of God on what to do, and when they acted on God’s counsel, they recovered all.
In the memory verse for today, Habakkuk said that he will stand upon his watch to see what God’s response to him will be.
Beloved, what is God saying about the prayer requests you have put before Him?
What is God saying about your family, your future, and your career?
If you are a child of God, you should note that God also wants to speak to you concerning your situation.
Unfortunately, many believers fail to wait on Him to hear what He has to say to them.
In Jeremiah 33:3, God said,
“Call on me and I will answer.”
He didn’t say,
“I may answer” or “I will consider answering.” He said, “I WILL answer.”
So, when you go to Him in prayers, tell Him, “Lord, I will not rest until you have answered me.”
Key Point
The most important part of prayer is hearing what God has to say concerning situations.
HYMN 7:– I am Thine, O Lord
1 I am Thine, O Lord, I have heard Thy voice,
And it told Thy love to me;
But I long to rise in the arms of faith,
And be closer drawn to Thee.
Refrain:
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer, blessed Lord,
To the cross where Thou hast died;
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer, blessed Lord,
To Thy precious, bleeding side.
2 Consecrate me now to Thy service, Lord,
By the pow’r of grace divine;
Let my soul look up with a steadfast hope,
And my will be lost in Thine. [Refrain]
3 Oh, the pure delight of a single hour
That before Thy throne I spend,
When I kneel in prayer, and with Thee, my God,
I commune as friend with friend! [Refrain]
4 There are depths of love that I cannot know
Till I cross the narrow sea;
There are heights of joy that I may not reach
Till I rest in peace with Thee. [Refrain]
Open Heaven For Today 2024 Monday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – Diligently Seeking
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TOPIC: Diligently Seeking
MEMORISE:-"And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart". Jeremiah 29:13
READ: Psalm 63:1-8(KJV)
1 O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
2 To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.
3 Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.
4 Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.
5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
6 When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.
7 Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.
8 My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Numbers 30-32
Open Heaven For Today 2023 MESSAGE
Hebrews 11:6 says that God is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.
You only reward someone who has done something of good report and has done it well, therefore, what the passage is really telling us is that God wants people to seek Him diligently.
This is why God told David clearly to seek His face, and what was David’s response?
When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek.
David said, “God, when you ask me to seek your face, my heart says, ‘Your face will I seek.’” Today, God is asking you to spend time seeking His face.
What will your response be?
You seek God through Bible study and prayers.
While others do these things like every other activity, those who diligently seek God go the extra mile.
They study their Bible for hours, going deeper and deeper into just one topic until they really understand God’s mind about that topic.
To them, prayer is not an event, it is a lifestyle. Every time you see them, they are praying because 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says that we must pray without ceasing.
When they actually set out time to pray, they don’t just put words together, they pour out their hearts to God and their major yearning is,
“Lord, I want to know You more.”
They spend multiple hours just having heart-to-heart talks with God.
Beloved, seek God’s face daily until you fall asleep and even while you are sleeping.
Solomon said that even when He is sleeping, his heart is awake, and can hear his beloved asking to come in unto him (Song of Solomon 5:2).
David also described how he thinks about God on his bed at night and how his soul follows hard after God in Psalm 63:6-8. These are descriptions of how true love is expressed.
Is this also your experience with God as your beloved?
There is great reward in diligently seeking the Lord. Beloved, spend your days seeking God and God alone.
Seek Him while you are eating; let all your yearning be for Him.
When you diligently seek Him, He will open Himself up in ways that the regular Christian may never see.
There are things God has revealed to me in the Spirit that I cannot share publicly because people who have not sought Him diligently may never understand.
Key Point
Make a commitment to seeking God’s face diligently from now
HYMN 8:– I Need Thee Every Hour
1. I need Thee every hour,
Most gracious Lord;
No tender voice like Thine
Can peace afford.
I need Thee, oh, I need Thee;
Every hour I need Thee;
Oh, bless me now, my Savior!
I come to Thee.
2. I need Thee every hour,
Stay Thou near by;
Temptations lose their power
When Thou art nigh.
3. I need Thee every hour,
In joy or pain;
Come quickly and abide,
Or life is vain.
4. I need Thee every hour,
Teach me Thy will;
And Thy rich promises
In me fulfill.
5. I need Thee every hour,
Most Holy One;
Oh, make me Thine indeed,
Thou blessed Son.
Open Heaven For Today 2024 Sunday Daily Devotional By Pastor E. A. Adeboye – Are You Relevant?
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TOPIC: Are You Relevant?
MEMORISE:-"And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch:" Acts 6:5
READ: John 15:1-6(KJV)
1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Numbers 27-29
Open Heaven For Today 2023 MESSAGE
There are different kinds of people in the church workforce today.
Some are so relevant to the work of God that if they are absent on a service day, everyone will notice.
There are some other people, however, who hardly do anything, even in the department where they claim to function.
Worse still, there are people who are members of the workforce on paper, but physically, they are nowhere to be found.
They hardly attend workers’ meetings not to talk of actually working for God.
I don’t know which of these categories you belong to, but if you are not so active that people can easily notice your absence, then you need to do better.
The first set of church workers in the Bible were the seven deacons mentioned in Acts 6:5.
Phillip was one of them, and in Acts 21:8, he had become someone referred to as the evangelist.
The Bible specifically referred to him as ‘the evangelist’, which means that there might have been ‘an evangelist, or some evangelists, but he was the evangelist’.
Furthermore, the passage referred to him as being one of the seven to remind us that he was one of seven deacons that were chosen.
However, asides Stephen and Phillip, we never heard of the rest.
One of my grandchildren once asked me, “Grandpa, do you know the Bible very well?” I said, “Yes” then she asked, “Who is Prochorus?” I said, “I don’t know him”.
She said, “What about Timon?” I said, “You mean Simon?” She said, “No, Timon”. I replied, “I don’t know Timon either.”
Then she said, “Prochorus and Timon were ordained along with Stephen and Phillip as deacons.” I said, “Is that so?
God have mercy on Prochorus. I know Stephen, I know Phillip, but this Prochorus fellow, what did he do that is worthy of note?”
In the same vein, when your name is mentioned in your local assembly, can people recognise the things you do that are worthy of note?
This is not to say that you must go around trying to show everyone that you are working.
However, your impact must be felt in the department where you choose to work.
For example, if you are in the sanitation department, everyone must know that if you are around, the church is always sparkling clean.
Make so much impact that it is impossible to deny your relevance in the house of God.
Reflection
How impactful have you been in your local assembly?
HYMN 4:– To The Work! To The Work! We Are Servants Of God
1 To the work! to the work! we are servants of God,
Let us follow the path that our Master has trod;
With the might of His power our strength to renew,
Let us do by His grace what He calls us to do.
Work for Him by His grace;
Work thru Him for His praise;
Work with Him all the days;
And work in Him in many ways.
2 To the work! to the work! let the hungry be fed;
To the fountain of life let the thirsty be led;
In the cross and its vict’ry our glory shall be,
While we herald the tidings, “Salvation is free!”
3 To the work! to the work! in the strength of the Lord,
By the pow’r of His Name, with the light of His Word,
All the slaves of the darkness of Satan set free
And His riches of grace in His glory we’ll see.
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