⁷He shall not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is firmly fixed, trusting (leaning on and being confident) in the Lord. ⁸His heart is established and steady, he will not be afraid while he waits to see his desire established upon his adversaries.

Psalm 112:7-8 (AMP)

Psalms 112 has been describing the man that walks uprightly, deals with justice, lends to people, and walks in the ways that are pleasing to the Lord. The Bible says in verse 7 that such one ‘shall not be afraid of evil tidings’ and that ‘[your] heart is firmly fixed, trusting in the Lord.’ Meaning that fear will be far from you.

Often times fear is able to grip our hearts when our ways are not pleasing to God. One of the blessing upon the righteous is the deliverance from fear. As you face your day today walk before the Lord in righteousness, and be confident not to entertain any fear whatsoever.  Your heart will not be afraid, you will not be moved; because you are certain that God is on your side. Face the day trusting in the Lord, you will experience his divine covering. Verse 8 says, ‘His heart is established and steady, he will not be afraid’. While you wait to see the manifestation of the grace of God over your life and of victory over your adversaries, fear will be far from you because you know that ‘God is for you’ (Isiah 56:9). What is expected of you is to be on God’s side always. The Lord will fight for you and give you great peace, and it shall be well with you; in Jesus’ name. Amen.

‘Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.’ Psalms 112:4

‘Light arises in the darkness for the upright, gracious, compassionate, and just [who are in right standing with God].’ Psalms 112:4 (AMP)

It is a blessing to be in right standing with God, or to walk in a manner pleasing to God. If you do this not only would you be blessed and your offspring be blessed but the passage goes on to say ‘Light arises in the darkness for the upright…’ If you are in the darkness light will arise unto you when your walk is pleasing to the all mighty God. This means God will give you direction, understanding, and revelations of the way to go even in difficult times. It means when life is shouting ‘confusion’, you will receive the needed grace, direction and revelation from God. If you make up your mind to live a just, compassionate, and merciful life, even in darkness, God’s light will shine on you.

Here is my admonition to you today; no matter how much of life’s challenges you are facing today, be determined to maintain your commitment to the Lord. And you can trust the Lord for the light you need in your darkness. May God’s unfailing hands bring you out of all your troubles today. I declare that it is well with you as you face your day, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

“Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom” Proverbs 13:10

Pride, if allowed in your heart is not wisdom. Many disputes and quarrels can be avoided if we resist pride. Pride has a lot to do with an elevation of personal ego. A man will never act in pride if he is wise.

Look at this scripture in other version of the bible and it will bless you.

Pride is a spirit that manifests in our attitudes. It tends to exaggerate your gifting and capabilities. You feel insulted because of pride. You feel insulted because you think you are worth more than what people present you to be. Pride kills, and before it kills you, you must determine to kill it in your life. It states clearly in our devotional scripture today that we should desist from pride.

Proverbs 14:3 says ‘In the mouth of a fool is a rod of pride, but the lips of the wise will preserve them’. It is only a foolish person that will speak with pride in his mouth. One thing we know is that pride is a thing of the heart. Check your heart and run away from pride; ask God to help you, and it will be well with, in Jesus name. May God bless your day, amen.

 “When pride comes, then comes shame: But with the humble is wisdom” Proverbs 11:2 NKJV

I like the Good News Version of this scripture ‘people who are proud will soon be disgraced; it is wiser to be modest’. Why not maintain an attitude that will sustain you and keep you standing firm. Since pride is a thing of the heart, you need to examine yourself and admit it to your own self if you are proud.  Pride will debase you if you don’t deal with it on time. So you have to cry to God today, and He will help you.

The word ‘humble’ is also referred to as ‘lowly’. Lowly means; you don’t overrate yourself. Don’t speak falsely out of pride; don’t describe what you do not have. Don’t overestimate your gifting – yes you are gifted, yes you have influence, but don’t overestimate it. Rather, even present the facts in lowliness of heart. The Bible says, God resists the proud but he lifts up the lowly. I am asking you today specifically to ask the Lord to help you because pride leads to shame.

Lord I pray that you will grant us grace to live with lowliness of heart, and bless your people today, in Jesus name, amen.

¹³ I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. ¹⁴ Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.

Psalms 27:13-14

‘I had fainted…’ When the psalmist analyses the situation in front of him and finds it negative the psalmist could have had such a visceral reaction as to faint. You might analyse your life and find that everything looks negative. Whatever situation you find yourself, always remember that you are not the first person in such a situation.

The psalmist goes on to say ‘I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.’ Would you still believe despite the negativity of the situation? Would you still be able to believe that you will see the goodness of God in the land of the living? This is another opportunity today to believe God with every fibre of your being, that you will see the goodness of the Lord.

As you face a new day, I pray you see the goodness of the Lord. Do not faint, nor be discouraged, and do not feel down because of your temporary perception of the situation. The Lord is saying ‘you will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living if you do not faint’. May God go with you today and grant you great peace, you will return with favour on every side in Jesus’ name. Amen.

‘For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.’ Psalms 5:12

Take note of some key words in the passage.

1. God will bless
2. God will favour
3. God’s favour will protect you.

God’s favour will be your shield – it will protect you. By God’s favour you will, instead of experiencing trouble or failure, be defended, and excel in life. Bible says ‘The Lord will bless the righteous’. You should believe, receive and claim the divine favour and blessing of God on your life today because you are a beloved of God. When you receive the favour of God your natural capacity gives way, your inadequacies give way, but the capacity of heaven takes precedence.

When the grace and favour of God descends upon your life there will be no space for struggles. Every area of stress and struggle in your life will be overcome. You will have favour in business and your ministry.

Psalms 102:13 says: ‘Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come.’ May you enjoy mercy and favour that God has declared concerning you today; may God go before you today, may you return with the fullness of the manifestation of the favour of God in Jesus’ name. Amen.

 ‘Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall’ Proverbs 16:18 NKJV

Pride precedes destruction! The moment you notice pride in someone; watch out, he or she is on the way down if care is not taken. Pride will bring down a man! The bigger a man’s ego is the greater the fall will be.

The earlier you can identify this problem in you, the quicker you would present yourself to God for help and therefore prevent the catastrophic danger that goes with pride, the better for you. Do not allow what you have or possess go to your head. It leads to arrogance and this result in a great fall.

Proverbs 16:5 says ‘everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to God’. Notice that pride is a thing of the heart. Nobody else may know it but you. You need to search your heart today and determine to desist from pride. Pr. 15:25 says ‘The Lord will destroy the house of the proud: but he will establish the border of the widow’. This is an interesting verse – usually a widow is assumed to be helpless. However, this scripture makes it clear that a widow has God’s help, while a proud man experiences God’s wrath! Pr. 29:23 says ‘a man’s pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit’.

Think through because this may be what has delayed your promotion till date; this might be the reason why your spouse has been having problems with you. It could even be the reason why those who should have helped you seems to run away from you! I pray you will be wise and deal with any trace of pride in you, and may God bless you in Jesus name, amen.

‘And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.’ Habakkuk 2:2

When you have reached the point where you have asked of the Lord, have received a word, and you have understood it; the next step is to agree with the word you received. Many people are burdened by the weight of their purpose because they do not agree with God’s purpose for their lives. They move to and fro between their God ordained purpose and what they personally want to be. They slow down their life journey simply by not accepting God’s divine plan for them. Do not let your journey be slowed down. Resolve in your heart to fulfil the purpose that God has revealed to you. Do away with all else and focus on Gods words for you. You only have one life and one purpose, and it comes from the Lord, the maker of all things.

Here is my advice for you today, if you have not done so, set apart an appropriate time, go to your quiet corner, place before you all that you know God has revealed to you. Talk to yourself, and commit yourself to pursuing that purpose, make God your witness in the closet, and come out determined to keep your word. God will help you as you take one step at a time. I can assure you, you will find fulfilment, and your life will be a blessing to many.  May God bless your day in Jesus’ name. Amen.

‘Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished’. Proverbs 16:5

The subject of pride is very important and it is very difficult to teach. This is primarily because as this verse clearly states; it is a ‘thing of the heart’. More so, there is both positive and negative dimension to it. You are the only one that can determine if you are proud in the negative sense of it – although people might detect it through your behaviours.

The proud offends God by self-exaltation; offends other people by self-preoccupation and bring themselves problems with self-declaration. The delusion increases until one fancies oneself so high as to be invulnerable (Oba. 3). Hear what God says in Obadiah 4 to the proud in heart, ‘Though you ascend as high as the eagle, and though you set your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down, says the Lord’.

The Bible describes pride as an abomination to the Lord! Abomination is: ‘anything that offends the spiritual, religious, or moral sense of a person and causes extreme disgust, hatred, or loathing’. It is something which is morally disgusting. It is in the same category with the worship of idols (Deut 7:25-26; 17:2-5); sexual transgression (Lev 18); practice of magic, witchcraft, and engaging in occult activities (Deut 18:9-14). Most of the Hebrew words translated “abomination” has the meaning of “impure,” “filthy,” and “unclean”- that which is foul-smelling and objectionable to a holy God.

‘Rob not the poor, because he is poor: neither oppress the afflicted in the gate: For the Lord will plead their cause, and spoil the soul of those that spoil them’. Proverbs 22:22-23

When the bible talks about ‘the gate’ – it is a description of the place or position where the elders and the people of authority and power meet. Someone might be described to be powerful either because of position, wealth, prestige or share popularity. ‘The gate’ is also relative – it could be within a community, within a company or a defined group of people.

Whatever the arena in which you might have power, today’s wisdom warns us to be careful how we deal with the poor in our sphere of influence.  A poor person may be someone who is helpless in some way, or who does not readily have anyone to help them out in their situation. A poor person may be at your mercy employment-wise or accommodation-wise or someone in financial lack.

The word of wisdom today states that we should be careful how we deal with this category of people. When any action is taken that indicate that one is taking undue advantage over someone else that can be described as being poor, God is saying He will personally plead their cause and spoil the soul of those that spoil them! The Common English Bible version says in verse 23, ‘The Lord will take their case and press life out of those who oppress them’. So think twice before you deal wrongly with the poor, otherwise, you will be an opponent of God in the same ‘boxing ring’ – that would be very disastrous!  As you face today, let the wisdom of wisdom dwell richly in your heart. God bless you.