Subject: Transformation 2 : Receive the garment of praise.
Welcome to this second day of praying. Were you able to make time for prayers today?
In order to overcome prayer neglect, I have to discipline myself to pray at 3 hourly intervals. Which has been a great help.
Give it a try, and you will see how your circumstances will change miraculously.
Which reminds me of how mother Sarah’s circumstances changed miraculously, after a Divine visitation.
In case you are not familiar with the story, I will briefly recant it now.
Mother Sarah was the sister-bride of Father Abraham.
She was barren.
She felt utterly hopeless, and convinced father Abraham into surrogacy with her maid.
That didn’t go well because her relationship with Hagar, her maid, deteriorated.
Can you relate with how frustrated, pained, rejected, and utterly hopeless she felt?
Well, she became abusive and the maid ran away. But later returned after she had an epiphany.
Good for her, but Sarah had to live with a pregnant maid, who made her barrenness more obvious.
Oh, how Sarah must have cried her prayers to God!
And one faithful day, she too had a prophetic encounter that changed her life.
“And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.” (Genesis 21:1-2 KJV)
Can you even imagine how happy both of them were?
And Father Abraham named him Isaac, and Sarah said, “God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me.” (Genesis 21:6 KJV)
My prayer for you is that the spirit of heaviness can no longer torment you.
You have been set free.
Your joy shall be complete.
All obstacles are removed.
In this season of transformation:
Your walk will change,
Your laughter will change,
Your talk will change.
Your finances will change.
Your mental health will change, for God is causing All things to work together for your good.
All those who despise you, will see God’s glory in your life, and their eyes will have respect for God, in the matchless name of Jesus Christ.
Dearly beloved friend, stay encouraged. Look beyond your present challenges, and see 👀 the goodness of God manifesting.
Was there a time in your experience that you made a good decision which came back to bite you?
This is not the time to apportion blame or politicize the situation.
From various news reports, we have been informed that the wildfires raging across Southern California are fuelled by the severe drought conditions, and strong winds.
Way back in 1 Kings 18: 16-45, Prophet Elijah had a confrontation with King Ahab to establish spiritual boundaries and reinforce faith in God.
Prior to that, there was drought in the land, which was the direct consequence for idolatry and other evils.
And when Elijah intervened, the situation changed favorably for the people, and for the land.
As our picture post states,
“Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years! Then, when he prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth began to yield its crops.” James 5:17-18 NLT.
Thank you for praying before. This time, let us pray for the skies to send down rain, in the matchless name of Jesus Christ.
Shalom from Hephzibah Christly, Ph.D, #TheSpiritualWarrior, January 23rd, 2025.
Although the Psalmist, while facing some unrelenting issues, cried out to God for healing, but he cried all the more for mercy.
[2] “Have mercy upon me, O LORD; for I am weak: O LORD, heal me; for my bones are vexed.
[4] Return, O LORD, deliver my soul: Oh save me for thy mercies’ sake.” (Psalm 6:2,4 KJV)
What is mercy?
Biblically, while Grace refers to God giving you what you do not deserve, Mercy speaks of God withholding from you what you deserve, such as judgment, condemnation, etc, and giving you undeserved kindness, compassion, and His righteousness.
#Testimony:
Which reminds me of my early years as a Missionary in a rural community in Africa.
I had no sponsorship, and had to minister God’s grace to a very poor community, from nothing.
I was always hungry and sick. The poverty and hardship was unbearable and frustrating.
I kept praying but it seemed God was too far away to even hear me.
Then, one day, it dawned on me to stop all those religious prayers and humbly ask God to just show me mercy.
That changed everything for me.
You must learn how to pray correctly.
You may be asking God for money or material things, with the thinking that these will solve all your problems.
Although material blessings might solve some problems, temporarily, only God’s mercy endures forever.
Therefore, if you are going through unrelenting health or marital issues, or whatever else is plaguing you, just cry out to God for His Mercy to prevail over judgment.
One of the things that I did when I was experiencing so much resistance against my progress in life and ministry, was to do a topical study of mercy. In order to understand what mercy involves, so that I could pray from a place of faith and conviction.
Never give up on yourself nor accept negatives as God’s will for you.
Fight the good fight of faith.
Fight your problems. Refuse to accept bad theological arguments, that positions you for unnecessary troubles.
It is true that scripture says that ‘the poor you will have with you always’, but nowhere in that scripture was your name mentioned!
Reposition yourself for victory with what Christ accomplished for you!
Keep asking for your miracle until God’s mercy manifests miraculously.
Read Psalm 7 for tomorrow.
I pray that God’s grace and mercy will speak and work for you, in every aspect of your life and ministry, in the matchless name of Jesus Christ.
Shalom from Hephzibah Christly, Ph.D., #TheSpiritualWarrior, January 6th 2025.
We know that the blessings of God make us rich without sorrows.
Today, which marks the first day, first week, first month and first Wednesday of this new year.
And according to our opening Scripture from Psalm 1:1;
“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, Nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
But his delight is in the law of the LORD; And in his law doth he meditate day and night.” (Psalm 1:1-2 KJV).
How to Abound in Blessings this new year:
1). Listen to Godly counsel.
2). Refuse to listen to or be influenced by ungodly counsel.
3). Take a stand for God, and refuse to align with those whose lives are governed by the works of the flesh (See Galatians 5:19-21 for a list)
4). Don’t support those who mock God and Godliness, such as Christian comedians who mock God and Christian virtues.
5) Delight yourself in reading the Bible and Meditating on the Words you read.
This year must be different from the past years.
You must say no to gallopy blessings- your life is not hooked to a heart monitoring machine that keeps going up and down.
You are well and alive and a RoyalPriest of God.
Your course in life must be upward and forward, and you must become stronger and stronger.
For it is written that;
“The righteous also shall hold on his way, And he that hath clean hands shall be stronger and stronger.” ( Job 17:9 KJV)
See Proverbs 4:18 also.
In order to stay on the right course for your life, you must
work on your relationship with God.
What better way to do so, than to read your Bible daily. So that you can familiarize yourself with Who God is, His ways, His works and His mind.
All these are revealed in the pages of the Bible.
Subscribe to a Daily Bible Reading Plan.
I read different translations of the Bible every year. It has been a great developer of my Spiritual life.
You can do it! Be intentional and be disciplined.
Let us Pray :
Father God, thank you for bringing us safely into this new year.
In the remaining eight days of these spiritual exercises, I ask that you touch the lives of all those who joined us. Overwhelm them with your blessings without sorrows.
We ask to experience your awesome greatness in manifold ways.
We ask also, that you will use us to display your excellence and perfection to the world, in the matchless name of Jesus Christ.
Proceed to Psalm 2, meditate on the Word and share your thoughts on your profile page or groups.
Be a blessing!
Shalom from Hephzibah Christly, Ph.D., #TheSpiritualWarrior , January 1st 2025.
When you accepted Jesus Christ Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you stopped being a commoner. You became what Apostle Peter refers to as.
“a chosen generation,
a royal priesthood,
an holy nation,
a peculiar people” (1 Peter 2:9)
Things changed for you.
The paradigm shifted for you.
All the ancestral yokes of mediocrity, lack of socio-economic status, ignominy, rejection, etc, which held you bound and diminished you in life, dropped off you!
You became Royalty and a Priest of the Most High God!
Never allow anyone tell you that you are a nonentity! You are somebody!
You are Somebody, and “Accepted in the Beloved” (Ephesians 1:6)
Hit your chest and say,
“I am somebody!”
You were recreated in Christ Jesus for His purposes! You have a purposeful life ahead of you!
Hallelujah!
In Revelation 1:6, we are informed also that He “has made us Kings and Priests to His God and Father” NKJV)
There is no question or controversy about it. You are a purpose-full Royalty.
The remaining verses of 1 Peter 2:9 says,
“That ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light”:(1 Peter 2:9 KJV)
The Amplified Classic explains it better :
“that you may set forth the wonderful deeds and display the virtues and perfections of Him Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light: [Exod. 19:5, 6.]”
One of the major reasons why God left you here on earth, after you became born again is so that you will “set forth the wonderful deeds and display the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light”
God desires that you be like Christ in your world, hence our meditation from God’s Word today says,
“It is not for kings to drink wine; Nor for princes strong drink “ Proverbs 31:4 KJV.
WHY? (Proverbs 31:5)
“Lest they drink and forget the law, And perverse judgment of any of the afflicted” Proverbs 31:5.
How should you Behave?
“Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour”. (1 Peter 5:8 KJV).
Sobriety is one of the distinctive qualities of the Royal Priesthood.
If you desire to fulfill your purposes in life, stay sober.
If you want to waste away your life, apply Proverbs 31:6-7
Conclusion:
As we go into this new season today, make that commitment to God and to yourself that you will always carry yourself as a Royal Priest.
Be that Christian folk, who distinctively displays the virtues, and perfections of God: who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.
You are the light of the world. You must shine so that people will see the AWESOMENESS of God in you!
#SpiritualWarfarePrayers:
I stand with you against all the forces of evil that worked against you in 2024.
I declare that they shall not accompany you into 2025.
In unity of faith, with the Prayer Partners, we shut the doors and gates of 2024 against illnesses, diseases, rejection, failures, alcoholism, indebtedness, depression, poverty, hardship, and everything else that stood against you.
And I command all the evil spirits influencing uglies, negatives, and evils against you and yours to go to the feet of Jesus Christ now.
I declare that 2025 is the year of the Lord, for satan, sin, and suffering shall no longer dominate you. There is the shout of a king in you.
You shall be glad and rejoice .
Doors of opportunities are opened to you.
There is a lifting up for you. Your businesses and careers shall flourish.
Whatever stands against you shall surrender to you.
No evil shall prosper against you.
Your faith in God will grow in leaps and your life will count for more.
I bless you from within my Spirit, and I declare that it is well with you and yours, in the matchless name of Jesus Christ.
Happy New year!
Welcome to 2025, the year that you will experience and display the AWESOMENESS of God.
Note:
We have Nine more days to complete our 40 days of Prayers, fasting-off entertainment, and off food for some hours, personal Bible Reading and meditations from the Chapters we read.
For the remaining 9 days, we shall Read and meditate from Psalms chapters One (1) to Nine (9). Enjoy!
Shalom from Hephzibah Christly, Ph.D., #TheSpiritualWarrior, December 31st, 2024
It was quite a struggle to choose what to share with you today, because everything I read from Proverbs 27 did minister to me, then I settled on verse 10:
“Thine own friend, and thy father’s friend, forsake not; Neither go into thy brother’s house in the day of thy calamity: For better is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off.” (Proverbs 27:10 KJV)
For clarity, here is this same verse from the New Living Translation: It will give you better understanding.
Proverbs 27:10 NLT
“Never abandon a friend— either yours or your father’s. When disaster strikes, you won’t have to ask your brother for assistance. It’s better to go to a neighbor than to a brother who lives far away.”
Three things to note here:
1). Never abandon friends, whether personal or family friends.
2). You won’t have to beg for assistance from relatives when you maintain good relationships with your friends. Friends are closer than relatives.
3). Be a good neighbor. Neighbors watch out for each other.
These are important aspects of life that you need to improve on, for your own sake.
No man is an Island. We need each other. Be relevant in your community. Reachout!
I have not been good at communicating with friends, family and my community. I will endeavor to make changes for as it is written:
“If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men” (Romans 12:18 KJV)
Let Us Pray:
Father, thank you for the grace of fellowship with you and with others.
Our busy lifestyle which should be a blessing has somewhat made socializing irrelevant.
Thank you for using today’s Bible verse to draw our attention to the importance of maintaining relationships with others.
Help us with daily reminders that will make us prioritize, refocus, and do the right things at the right time.
For those whose relationships are strained, We ask for forgiveness, reconciliations and restorations.
Help us Father, to be more like Jesus Christ in all aspects of life, in the matchless name of Jesus Christ.
Tomorrow is Proverbs 28.
Shalom from Hephzibah Christly, Ph.D., #TheSpiritualWarrior, December 27th, 2024
Greetings people of God. Today marks the 20th day of our spiritual exercises.
For those just joining us, we are on 40 days of fasting-off food for some hours, dedicated to Bible Reading from Proverbs 1-31, and Psalm 1-9, meditate on the Bible verses read, and to pray regularly by 9 am, 12 Noon, & 3pm.
Everyday, I share my thoughts on verses that I meditated on,
Today, While I read Proverbs 20, verse 28 gave me food for thought.
“Mercy and truth preserve the king: And his throne is upholden by mercy” (Proverbs 20:28 KJV).
In 1 Peter 2:9, the Believer is referred to as Royalty and a priest. And Revelation 1:6 says that we have been made kings and priests unto God.
I let it metabolize that as a Christian Believer, I am a king and Priest. Therefore mercy and truth are the preservatives
that will keep me relevant in this world.
Soul Searchlight:
*Spend some time reviewing how you managed relationships this year.
Have you been sarcastic, and evasive, or been very merciless in condemning those who sin differently 🤔
Many of us are not straight up in our speech! Whereas Jesus teaches us His disciples let our ‘yes be yes and our no be no’
*Acknowledge to God your lies and mercilessness.
*Make a commitment going forward, to let mercy to everyone be your guiding principle and to always speak the truth with love too.
Let Us Pray:
Father God, thank you for accepting us as a kingdom of kings and priests.
We are grateful that your mercy continues to keep us.
We repent of all the ways we were judgmental, condemning and hardhearted.
Help us Father as we work out our salvation and commit to renew our minds, and become effective witnesses for your grace and mercy, in the matchless name of Jesus Christ.
Tomorrow, go ahead to Proverbs 21.
Shalom from Hephzibah Christly, Ph.D.,#TheSpiritualWarrior. December 20th, 2024.
“There are many devices in a man’s heart; Nevertheless the counsel of the LORD, that shall stand”(Proverbs 19:21 KJV).
What are Devices:
Devices in a person’s heart refers to plans, plots, thoughts, and intents in the heart.
Devices can be in a bad, insidious way, or they can be good.
We are cautioned not to be ignorant of the devices of the devil, who goes about like a roaring lion looking for prey. (I Peter 5:8)
And we are to resist him by being steadfast in faith.(1 Peter 5:9)
Again, we are to take our shield of faith in order to disable or quench all fiery darts of the devil.(See Ephesians 6:16)
Faith is the armor of choice when you have to go against evil plans, predictions, false prophecies, diagnoses and prognoses.
How To Use the Shield of Faith:
Recently, someone contacted me about some perceived bad medical issues, which required further tests.
He was scared because the initial test results were scary because they pointed to terminal sickness.
Establish your desire:
I simply asked him, ‘do you want to die now? He said, ‘of course not, I desire to live a long, healthy and prosperous life’
Then I told him to hold that thought in his heart based on God’s Word from Psalm 91:16, which states :
“That with long life I will satisfy him, and show him My salvation”.
And declare from his heart that, “ I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD”(Psalm 118:17).
Clarify what you believe:
Next, I asked him if He believes in his heart that Christ “took our sicknesses and removed our diseases” (Matthew 8:17, NLT)
He answered in the affirmative.
The question to settle in your mind is whether God means what He says by His Word.
If it is written that Jesus took your sicknesses and removed your diseases, how can you have what has been taken away?
Always settle what you believe in your mind before you receive any bad or good news so that nothing will destabilize your equilibrium.
Apply this same principle to whatever you are dealing with: believe what the Word says and claim it for you.
Guard your heart diligently:
I further explained to him the importance of guarding the heart by making the decision to not accept any diagnoses that contradicts God’s Word that he believes.
No matter who is presenting the negativity, never accept it.
It is not denial, or escaping from reality, but guarding your heart from receiving, meditating on, and functioning with the negative information.
Reinforce your beliefs system:
You have to also shield the framework for your thinking with those Words of God that you believe, by personalizing, and repeatedly declaring them, until they become part of your subconscious responses to everything, especially illnesses or diseases, no matter what the professionals say.
As the Bible states the name of Jesus is exalted above all names (Philippians 2:9-11)
Never fear anything that comes against you, just confront it with your shield of faith.
Speak to your body:
Next, I told him to speak to his body by telling his body what Christ accomplished. For example, ‘the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, has made us free from the law of sin and death, is at work in his body. Therefore, incipient death has no further liberties in his body. (Romans 8:2)
Whatever your situation is, speak to it. Jesus set us the precedent when he spoke directly to the raging storm, the mute spirit, etc . And also told us greater things than those we would do. ( See Mark 11:23, Mark 4:39, Mark 9:25)
Since we have been cautioned not to ignore the devices of satan, we know from the scriptures that satan devices take advantage of those who do not forgive quickly. (Read 2 Corinthians 2:11)
It is your responsibility to forgive quickly and easily, so that satan will not frustrate your faith by victimizing you legally.
In order to effectively use the shield of faith, it is important that you read your Bible and know what it says.
Faith comes by hearing the Word of God. Only the Word of God can reinforce your shield of faith.
Be Careful how you hear or receive bad news, so that satan’s devices will not prosper against you.
#SpiritualWarfarePrayers:
1)Thank God for the shield of faith and for the grace to destroy all the fiery arrows of satan against you and yours.
2)Admit all your doubts, and reinstate your faith in God.
3)Read Psalm 21:11 KJV
“For they intended evil against thee: They imagined a mischievous device, which they are not able to perform”
4) Thank God for saving you from all the evils projected against you this past year. And affirm that going forward all evil imaginations against you are yours are nullified.
5)Read Job 5:12 which says,
Job 5:12 KJV
“He disappointeth the devices of the crafty, So that their hands cannot perform their enterprise”
6)Affirm that no crafty devices shall succeed against you and yours, and all satanic enterprises programmed against you and yours are bankrupt in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.
7)Thank God that in Him you live, move and have your being, in the matchless name of Jesus Christ.
Tomorrow is Provetbs chapter 20.
Shalom from Hephzibah Christly, Ph.D., #TheSpiritualWarrior, December 19th 2024.
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