RCCG Updates

Open Heavens Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye Memorise: I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly. Psalm 85:8 Read: John 1:1-5, Galatians 1:10-18 H appy New Year and welcome to 2012! Everything on earth has a beginning. How you start an undertaking is very important as it sets the tone for how it will progress and end. My prayer for you is that you may begin this year in such a way as to get the best from it in Jesus name. We learn from Apostle Paul in today’s reading that, one great way to start an assignment is to be taught of God and to receive the word from God, little wonder he made such great impact. Start your year with a Word from God. Every year, God has something to say to you about the New Year. According to Genesis 1:1-3, when God sent His Word, it brought about a world of difference right at the beginning. Do you know that God has something to say about your li...

Open Heavens Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye MEMORIZE: “The merciful man doeth good to his own soul: but he that is cruel troubleth his own flesh.” (Prov. 11:17). READ: Proverbs 11:16-18 G od’s wisdom is full of mercy (James 3:17). Matthew 5:7 says it is the merciful that will receive mercy. This means that mercy responds to the principle of sowing and reaping. If you want mercy, show mercy to those in need and you will reap its harvest. No wonder Proverbs 11:17 says the merciful is only being merciful to himself or herself. Has someone offended you and you feel like descending on the fellow with all your wrath? Remember that if only you can restrain yourself and show him or her some mercy, mercy will await you at your point of judgement. A lion was asleep one day when a little rat which was playing, mistakenly climbed over it and woke it up. Annoyed, the lion decided it would have the rat for breakfast. But the little rat pleaded for mercy reminding the lion that i...

Open Heavens Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye MEMORIZE: “And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” (2 Tim 4:4). READ: 2 Timothy 4:3-4 I n His letter to the Church at Sardis, the Lord warned that they should be watchful (Rev. 3:2). Believers in Christ must watch against satanic wiles and temptations. Another area to watch against is false teachings and doctrines. In Acts 20:29-30, Paul warned the brethren that after his departure, some false teachers would rise up in their midst, targeting the flock. You would be amazed to know that many who are spearheading erroneous doctrines today, used to be sound in doctrine. They once wined and dined with genuine believers. They were numbered among the disciples of Jesus Christ. So, what brought about the change from truth to error? “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;” (...

Open Heavens Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye MEMORIZE: “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). READ: Romans 8:31-33 T here are different relational possibilities you can have by considering these phenomena: ‘Christ for you’ and ‘Christ with you’. Christ for you signifies divine approval or support. This has a tremendous implication because Romans 8:31 says, “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us who can be against us?” When Christ is for you, no curse placed on you will work. When Balak tried to make prophet Balaam to curse the children of Israel, he met with a brick wall. In Numbers 23:8, Balaam confessed that it was impossible to curse the one God has blessed. If a Christian is affected by a curse, it is doubtful whether he or she has God’s support. If God is for you, there is no need to spend sleepless nights over enemies. Whenever I am faced with opposition, I turn to God to ask if I hav...

Open Heavens Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye MEMORIZE: “The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious; but the lips of a fool will swallow up himself.” (Eccl. 10:12). READ: Ecclesiastes 10:11-14 “H e that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool” (Prov. 10:18). A mark of foolishness is slander. Engaging one’s lips in such a way as to damage the good opinions people hold about somebody through falsehood, is sin. God never gave you that tongue to pull down others but to build them up. Using your tongue to say false things about others, just because you want them to lose favour with those you are telling, is tongue abuse. It is only a fool who will lie against his or her neighbour. If what you want to say will not edify others, you are not under compulsion to speak: keep quiet! Gossiping, backbiting, and being talkative are injurious to the speaker. Ecclesiastes 10:12 says a fool’s mouth will swallow him or her up. It is a fool that is alw...

Open Heavens Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye MEMORIZE: “For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.” (Prov. 2:6). READ: 2 Chronicles 1:6-12 O ne thing we learn from the account in 2 Chronicles 1:6-12 is that wisdom is relative or comparative. This means, the wisdom of one person can be compared with that of another. If wisdom is relative, then it can grow. As a young boy, Solomon was wise enough to offer God an unprecedented sacrifice. He was wise enough to ask for wisdom. This is a display of unusual wisdom. However, by the time God granted his request, he had such wisdom that made him incomparable to other wise people across the globe. This means that if you are already wise, you can be wiser. You can never have too much of wisdom! The more wisdom you have, the more successful you will be. Similarly, there are two kinds of strength. The natural and the supernatural strength. The natural strength is the one possessed by youths...

Open Heavens Devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye MEMORIZE: “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” (Matt 6:12). READ: Matthew 6:9-15 T he wisdom of God is pure, peaceable and gentle. Another attribute of divine wisdom according to James 3:17 is that it is easily entreated. That means it easily forgives. In the Lord’s Prayer recorded in Matthew 6:9-15, our Lord Jesus Christ spoke about forgiveness. Verse 11 and 12 are key here. Verse 11 says, “Give us this day our daily bread”. This scripture tells us how much we ought to depend on God. An outstanding truth here is that no matter your size or strength, without God’s assistance, you cannot provide yourself with your daily bread. This is why I always smile when I hear someone address a particular individual as the ‘bread winner’. If you want to go to work and God withdraws His support for your legs, they will not be able to function. There are many people who have legs but cannot walk with them. Peop...