Divine Encounters

Day 213 Reading: Ezekiel 5:1 - Ezekiel 9:11 Today as I sat down to write the blog I bowed my head in prayer first to thank God for the testimonies I hear and those I don't know. We all love receiving good news and so for me to hear testimonies of how God is using the blog to minister to people of different age groups and nationalities it humbles me to seek God more than ever. My desire is for this blog to be a battle-axe in the Hand of God against His enemies in the lives of His own. Ezekiel was called to be a prophet who functioned very much in the realm of visions. Reading through today's reading it struck me that Ezekiel's eyes saw beyond what was natural. For this prophet he was not just sent with words he heard but also he saw into the heavenly realm. Ezekiel not only saw heaven but would be transported in the spirit to see what was happening in the natural. Let me explain this. Imagine being sat at home and suddenly God takes you for a walk and you see wh...

Day 195 Reading: Isaiah 65:1 - Isaiah 66:24 Isaiah was a prophet whom I greatly admire. Reading through the book of Isaiah and in various places in the Bible where he is mentioned, I have admired him. Here is a man whose prophetic ministry to the nation of Israel was without question powerful yet different. As we conclude this book today I was inspired to list a few things on the prophetic ministry of Isaiah. Isaiah prophesied for at least 40 years. His ministry span covered 4 kings of Judah. Many today don't have longevity in ministry. We have to break this one-time wonder devil in ministry.  Isaiah's name means God is salvation which is actually the theme of this book. Isaiah's ministry was about God's plan of salvation. No other prophet prophesies so much about God's plan of salvation like Isaiah. Is your life about the salvation of God for men or a personal plan for yourself. Isaiah lived a life given to God. The encounter where He is taken to the ...

Day 131 Reading: 2 Chronicles 35:1 - 2 Chronicles 36:23 What have I learned from reading the chronicles of how Israel asked for a King in 1st  Samuel to the time of the nation being led to captivity because they had departed from the ways of God? That was the question I heard in my heart as I was studying the scriptures today. The Bible is not a storybook we read for entertainment. The Bible is God's Word for our edification, instruction and in studying it one becomes knowledgeable in the ways of God. This list of lessons learnt is not exclusive to the 2 Books of Chronicles but includes lessons from 1st Samuel to the end of the 2nd Chronicles. No one should take the place of God . The children of Israel in asking for a king to lead them like other nations despised God's leadership. Child of God where have you chosen to be like the other nations and despised God's leading? God can pick anyone to rule . The same God who chose Saul fired him and left him on the thr...

Day 113 Reading: 2 Kings 24:1 - 2 Kings 25:30 Today we see many places of worship in the westernised world closing down for many reasons. This is not a new phenomenon. When the people of God have departed from worshipping God, the House of God has been destroyed. As I wrote this blog all I could hear was a clarion cry to return to God wholeheartedly. The day of God's wrath is drawing near and yet many are asleep to this fact. Arise and tell the world to get ready for a shaking is coming.  After King Josiah died, the kings we are introduced to never sought God. They walked in the ways of the those who departed from God's commandments. And as God had declared in the days of Manasseh, the Jerusalem and Judah were taken captive. We are introduced to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon who laid siege over Jerusalem and took all the bronze, gold and silver from the House of God. He simply took apart the House of God taking away the beauty it had.  In reading about the ca...

Day 109 Reading: 2 Kings 12:1 - 2 Kings 14:29 God answers prayer and yes I know sometimes it looks like our praying is only hitting the ceiling. It can be frustrating to our walk with God when all things are not working out as expected after prayer. There are various facets to prayer. Prayer is a vast topic and one I am continually learning. Prayer is communication with God. Its a two-way conversation with God regarding circumstances in life. Jehoash on becoming King of Judah is recorded as having walked in the ways of God. He did what was right in the sight of God even though he never removed the high places that people were using to worship. He was keen to see the House of God restored and wondered why the priests were not heeding the instructions to get the work going. Lord, give us leaders who will yearn for Your House to be restored to its glory.  Jehoahaz became the King of Israel in the 23rd year of King Jehoash's reign. This was the year that King Jehoash b...

Day 108 Reading: 2 Kings 9:1 - 2 Kings 11:21 Many people will want to know how they can see the promises of God fulfilled in their lives. One of the biggest frustrations I find amongst believers, me included,  is many suffer from unfulfilled promises. Too many are fatigued wondering why the promises are taking longer to come to pass. These frustrations and stagnation in life have caused many to lose faith in God. However, don't fuzz your blessing by thinking that delay is denial. God's word can never fail. His Word is guaranteed to come to pass. Learn to remind yourself of the times God's Word has come to pass. Elijah was given instructions by God when he fled to the cave in Horeb after the threats of Jezebel. After the encounter where God speaks to him with a still small voice, he received instructions to anoint three people. Elijah was to anoint Jehu as King of Israel, Hazael as King of Syria and Elisha as his successor. Elijah anointed Elisha as his successo...

Day 107 Reading: 2 Kings 6:1 - 2 Kings 8:29 Faith is what enables us to see divine answers on human challenges. Without faith, we cannot enjoy the blessings of God. Faith is what makes the promises of God come alive. Faith is what made Abraham the father of the children of Israel. He believed God that what God said would happen. Faith places you in the proximity of God and removes you from the level of mere men. Faith provides the bridge to access the land of promise. The challenges you are facing are simply weights to help build your faith for greater dimensions of living. To build muscle and become stronger you must lift weights that are uncomfortable. See the place where you are as a faith-building exercise for exploits. One area we need to apply our faith is in extending our boundaries. The sons of the prophets stated that the residence was too small. They went out to cut down logs to build the extension. In the process of logging, one prophet who had borrowed an axe h...

Day 106 Reading: 2 Kings 4:1 - 2 Kings 5:27 God is more than able to turnaround our situations from ugly to beautiful. It doesn't matter how bad the mess is. God can deal with every situation and is more than willing to provide a solution to the challenges we face. The Word of God is creative in nature. In the beginning, we saw the God speak as part of Creation. Reading the passage of scripture above I perceived that it's God's mind to release His power over every messy situation we are in.  Let every debt in your life hear the mind of God. Within you is the capacity to deal with that debt. The woman and her two sons were facing creditors who were coming with bailiffs to take away her sons as slaves. She cried to the prophet that by reason of the service to God her husband had given to God, may the family see the merciful hand of God in delivering them from this oppression. She didn't buy anything to trade with to get out of the situation. God multiplied wh...

Day 105 Reading: 2 Kings 1:1 - 2 Kings 3:27 Congratulations as we begin the second book of Kings. As we continue this chronological read through the bible I encourage you not to give up. Reading the Bible is the best thing you can do for your life. Don't forget that studying, meditating and obeying the Word are the keys to success Joshua 1:9 . To walk the journey of life without a roadmap is to plan to fail. God gives us His Word as a manual to follow to arrive at the place He has ordained for us. Your success is hidden in the Word of God. Finding His Word and heeding it will open doors of success. Elijah fled the place of assignment at the threats of Jezebel. After the encounter with God in the cave, he returns to Israel with an assignment. He was to anoint his successor Elisha, to anoint Jehu as king over Israel and Hazael as king over Syria. He met Elisha who followed him promptly leaving his life behind him to go serve the prophet 1 Kings 19 . Ahaziah, Ahab's s...

Everyone is born with a desire to achieve. Not everyone's desire is the same thus measuring desire for achievement cannot be computed by an equation without taking into account many factors that vary with every person. Over the last few weeks as I have looked within and without and I have felt the need to change my life is what God desires most. One cannot achieve much in life without change. We are constantly tweaking areas of our lives to achieve more. Change is a constant in our lives whether we like it or not.  The bible is replete with examples of men and women who achieved fulfilment in life when they changed. Elisha changed from a farmer to being the person God called him to be. Esther changed from the simple girl to the being a queen after 1 year of beautification; the disciples were changed from mere men to becoming apostles after spending time with the Master.  The time for change is here. The challenges we are facing in life are to help cultivate the condit...