FAITH CAPSULE: A wrong opening is rooted in disobedience to God. 

Daniel 16      

Disobedient to the word of God is an opening door for the enemy.
The Angel of the Lord appeared to the mother of Samson with word of instructions, “…Indeed now, you are barren and have borne no children, but you shall conceive and bear a son. Now, therefore, please be careful not to drink wine or similar drink, and not to eat anything unclean. For behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. And no razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazarite to God from the womb; and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.” (Daniel 13:3-5) 
Evidently, as a Nazarite, Samson was not supposed to cut off his hair.
The hair of Samson is the source of the power of God in his life. 
Samson was set apart from birth for his divinely appointed mission, but his disability to full compliance with instructions is evidence of disobedience. 
Samson was to be a Nazarite but violated the word of instruction for his hair.
Samson liked what God disliked when he revealed the secret of God in his life to Delilah.
Judges 16:4 -6 records, “…he loved a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came up to her and said to her, “Entice him, and find out where his great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him, that we may bind him to afflict him; and everyone of us will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver.” So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me where your great strength lies, and with what you may be bound to afflict you.” 
The infatuation of Samson for Delilah led him to his disobedience. 
What is leading you to disobey the word (command) of God? 
Delilah successfully engaged the Philistines to shave Samson.
Delilah called on Samson, “…So he awoke from his sleep, and said, “I will go out as before, at other times, and shake myself free!” But he did not know that the LORD had departed from him. Then the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza. They bound him with bronze fetters, and he became a grinder in the prison.” (Judges 16:20-21)
Samson failed before God. 
Samson demonstrates what it means to depart from God due to disobedience to the word of God.
There are so many back doors for the enemy to come into the life of one.
A wrong opening is rooted in disobedience to God, and sin will take residence in the life of one that opens their heart wrongly.
With sin, one will become vulnerable to the enemy, the advantage for the evil. Proverbs 13:21 points out, “Evil pursues sinners…” 
To be seeking God with diligence should not be a liberty to open the self to evil.
All should have the desire to engage in instruction in the word of God, which is evidence of hating knowledge.

Prayer for today: Pray against wrong opening up for the enemy.

FAITH CAPSULE: A sleeping believer is not watching for the arrival of Jesus.

Matthew 25:1-13, Luke 22:39-46

To be awake is watching.
One sleeping at the time of watching will miss and not gain.
Believe it, Jesus will soon return. The ten virgins went to sleep and missed their purpose in time.
Matthew 25:1-5 states, “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.”  
The ten virgins went with the right intention but lacked the attention to meet the bridegroom. 
The ten virgins knew about the time to go and meet with the bridegroom but not be awake. 
They all slept off and slumbered. 
The majority of acclaimed believers do have the intention to run and finish the race but lack attention that will deny getting to the expected end. 
All of the ten virgins fell asleep in their waiting. 
They did not just sleep, but they slept and slumbered because the bridegroom was delayed. 
Five virgins could afford to sleep because they had extra oil, while the other five did not carry extra oil.
Without carrying extra oil demonstrate foolishness. 
Are you staying awake in watching? 
The time and season demand believers to know and become awake, watching not to miss out when the bridegroom arrive. 
As an acclaimed believer, how are you watching? 
It is impossible to sleep-watch. 
Is your sleeping time overriding your time to watch? 
As a disciple of the Lord, are you watching in prayer or sleeping in sorrow?
To sleep in the place of watching and praying is spiritually asleep.
To be spiritually asleep in a challenging time is positioning self for destruction. 
Also, when the trumpet sound, sleeping will miss just like the oil-less five virgins, five that went without extra oil.
Take the parable of the ten virgins to heart today. 
All went to attain, but they lacked the attention to prevailing. 
The bridegroom came without any warning because the sign of the season was all they needed to inform or warn them of His coming.
They all slept and slumbered, and nothing woke them up but the noise of the arrival of the bridegroom.
Without any doubt, it is clear that the church today is sleeping. 
Are you a sleeping church with no extra oil? 
The noise of the church or the noise in the church will not be able to deliver oil-less believers when the bridegroom arrives unexpectedly. 
Prepare, expects the coming of Jesus as the bridegroom.
Be awake and alive in the spirit!

Prayer for today: Ask not to be a victim of sleeping when there is a need to be awake.

FAITH CAPSULE: God is to be served indeed and in truth.

2 Samuel 6

Serving God is to live life by His word for His glory.
God is to be served indeed and in truth.
Serve God with all heart, with all soul, and with all strength. 
A good intention to serve God and not serve Him right does not count before Him.
Uzzah had a good intention to serve but served wrongly and lost his life. 
He was in an attempt to stop the ark from stumbling when he put out his hand to stop the ark from falling off. 
The act of serving was against the word of God that forbids anyone from touching the ark. 
The Bible records, “Then the anger of the LORD was aroused against Uzzah, and God struck him there for his error; and he died there by the ark of God.” (2 Samuel 6:7) 
Uzzah was in the position to serve God but failed to follow with his heart; he violated the command of God to become terminated.
The children of Israel were coming out of the bondage of over four hundred years when God required them to serve Him, but they could not serve God with their whole hearts.
One serving God is the evidence not to confess negative at all times.
The Israelites confessed negatively instead of positively. 
God responds to the Israelites through Moses, “Say to them, ‘As I live,’ says the LORD, ‘just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you: The carcasses of you who have complained against Me shall fall in this wilderness, all of you who were numbered, according to your entire number, from twenty years old and above. Except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun, you shall by no means enter the land which I swore I would make you dwell in.” (Numbers 14:28-30)  
A failure not to serve with the whole heart is the evidence of not following Him fully.
As a result of failure to serve God, all the Israelites above twenty years could not arrive in the Promised Land.
They were trapped in the wilderness because their service failed before God. 
A failure to serve God right cannot arrive at the promise of God.
The Israelites failed in serving God to be terminated in the wilderness. 
Serving God is why God brought them out of the bondage of over four hundred years.
In life, answering a title is not the evidence of serving God diligently, but engaging in the task will count before God.
Are you one serving as prayer intercessor, choir leader, usher, Sunday school teacher, deacon, or elder but not serving God diligently engaging task? 
Many claims to be serving God but lack the understanding to walk in line with God.
Are you a committed server but far from God with your heart? 
Think about your way of serving God to do right, count before God, and not be a failure not arrive at the promise of God.

Prayer for today: Ask that you will know to serve God right and not be a failure.

FAITH CAPSULE: This new month, understand that God has brought you this far, not because you know how to live life.

Psalm 106

It is not how long one is yet to experience the answer to prayer before God that counts, but how far God has brought one in life journey.
God has brought you this far.
Resolve your life by giving thanks to God for all things, and all things shall work together for good.
It is never too late to experience the remembrance of God or visitation of God.
In your expectation, pray as the Psalmist prays, “Remember me, O Lord, with the favor You have toward Your people. Oh, visit me with Your salvation.” (Psalm 106:4)
God has brought you this far!
Life can be cumbersome with labor and discouragement that comes with pain.
Know that healing and deliverance will answer all kinds of pain.
The healing power of the word of God is encouraging.
Engage the word against the pain of the wicked world for healing and deliverance.
Psalm 107:20 encourages, “He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.”
The word of God is power yesterday, today, and forever.
The word of God is with direction, to deliver and preserve anyone that will give self to the word of God.
Give yourself to the word of God that heals!
The care of God has brought you this far!
Living in the consciousness of the care of God is the evidence of faith, the expression of expectation for the divine protection of God. 
This new season, know to look up to God continually with the expectation, and do not be weary or discouraged from waiting on God for His appointed time.
Know to seek God diligently to gain and retain His presence.
When the expectation for manifestation is not at hand, one should not be discouraged from walking before God but live life by His word.
Acts 6:4 encourages, “but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
Living life by the word of God is to gain and retain the presence of God.
The presence of God is the nearness of God.
In the near to God is the protection of God if one will give self to prayer and the word of God.
Ask to be enabled to give thanks continually, not casually, to God.
Maintaining life with God is to gain His presence for deliverance and preservation.
Ephesians 5:20, “giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 
Let it be your character to give God thanks for all things and expect things to work together for good.
Romans 8:28 records, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God…”
Gain the understanding and knowledge to become one thanking God for all things regardless of any challenge, and all things shall work together for good. 
God performs in prayer and perfects for all in thanksgiving.
Give thanks to God always!
God has brought you this far.

Prayer for today: Ask God with a desire to live life in the consciousness of His care for your life. 

FAITH CAPSULE: In the near to God is the protection of God.

2 Kings 6

Once, while Elisha and his servant were in the face of challenge, Elisha knew they were near God, but his servant did not know.
The servant of Elisha was not aware of the presence of God for their deliverance.
Elisha knows the nearness of God and was able to see, to command the forces of God that were in support of him and his servant.
A believer of God that live life by the word of God should have the understanding and know that God is near at all times.
2 Kings 6:18 records, “So when the Syrians came down to him, Elisha prayed to the LORD, and said, “Strike this people, I pray, with blindness.” And He struck them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.” 
Living in the consciousness of the care of God is the evidence of faith, the expression of expectation for the divine protection of God. 
Do you know that God is near for you?
The Psalmist expresses, “A man who is in honor, yet does not understand, is like the beasts that perish.” (Psalm 49:20) 
God made all but many lives life outside of God, not as a child of God, not keeping to His command, and far from God. 
In the near to God is the protection of God for one that draws near to God.
Elisha walks in line with God, knows his nearness to God, and can see that the forces are waiting for his command before they can act on his behalf. 
Elisha and his servant were protected and could not become a victim of their enemies.
Maintaining life with God is to gain His presence for protection.
What does it take to gain and maintain being nearness of God? 
The pages of the Bible identify what it takes to gain and maintain self in the near of God.
Acts 6:4, “but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
Acts 20:32, “So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.”
Jude 20, “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”
According to the word of God, seek God diligently by: 
Giving self continually, not casually, to the word of God.
Give yourself to be built up and be able to claim the blessings of God.
Give yourself to be a prayerful believer.
Give self to the word of God to become a faithful believer.
Be near to the nearness of God that is always near for all that will walk in His word.

Prayer for today: Ask God with a desire to live life in the consciousness of His care for your life.