TheNewsGuru

Tag: devotional

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Managing your mental health in difficult times (1)

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Managing your mental health in difficult times (1)

    Read: Philippians 4:6-8

    Meditation verse:

    “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with  thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6).

    The month of May is mental health awareness month, and in the next few days,  we will be looking at how we can prioritize our mental health. Part of being  human is facing challenging situations. John 16:33, says In this world, you will  have tribulation. Life can happen when we least expect and so much gets thrown  at us that affects our mental health. The world is filled with people who are  broken and bruised due to the trauma they have passed through at one time or  the other. And this is dangerous to the healthy functioning. Here are a few  strategies to help you manage your mental health amid difficult times: 

    THE POWER OF PRAYERS. Prayer connects you to a higher source of power. Connecting to a higher power will help you navigate the impossible. John 15:5 says: “I am the vine; you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him,  bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing”. 

    THE POWER OF GRATITUDE: Learn to be grateful to God for little blessings. No  matter how difficult things are with you, there is always something to be grateful  for. Keep a gratitude journal and count your blessings. This will help you stay  motivated and focused on the positives around you.  

    THE POWER OF FOCUS. Be intentional about what you choose to focus on.  Whatever you focus on magnifies. If you want to feed a problem, focus on it.  Focus on the negative it magnifies, focus on the positive it magnifies. The  principle here is selective attention. Choose to focus on the positives, rather  than on the negatives. 

    SENSE OF HUMOR: Do not take yourself seriously. Learn to laugh at yourself and  mistakes sometimes. Are you able to see the funny side of things? Laughter is therapeutic. 

    SOCIAL SUPPORT: Who do you surround yourself with in difficult times? Are  there people who believe in you and can support you? The journey is easier  when you are part of a supportive community. Join a community. You cannot do  life alone. Life was not designed for isolation.

     

    IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

    For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

    or call +2348155525555

    For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: SHOW UP

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: SHOW UP

    Read: John 5:1-9

    Meditation verse:

    “Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” (John 5:8).

    I woke up on a particular Thursday morning experiencing extreme dizzy spells.  The dizziness was so bad, it kept me in bed all morning and afternoon. As I lay in  bed, I wondered how I would host the weekly Prayer Rain of The Fulfilled  Woman Fellowship (TFWP). Several options raced through my mind as I laid  there feeling ill. ‘Cancel the meeting’, ‘Send a message of apology to the women  to let them know how sick you are’, ‘ask someone else to host the meeting’.  

    Many other options kept surfacing and then I heard the following words in my  spirt. “Show up even if you can’t put on your camera, show up even if you can’t  pray out loud as you would normally do, just show up as you are’. I got up still  feeling woozy, helped myself to a cup of tea and proceeded to get ready for the  meeting. I showed up for that meeting and what an impactful meeting it was. I  shared my story with the women as I sensed that God wanted someone present  to receive the encouragement needed to move forward.  

    Irrespective of your current situation in life, you must keep showing up wherever  you need to, even if you must limp or stagger forward. If I had remained on that  bed, I would have missed being a blessing to the women. We miss out on  opportunities, when we fail to show up, and some other person takes our place.  Jesus said to the lame man, “rise, take up your bed and walk”. Your bed is that  affliction, pain, or issue that kept you bound in that spot. Sometimes, God may  not remove that affliction, you would need to trust Him, pick up that bed and go  forward.  

    No matter how heavy the bed of affliction you must carry is, make a  commitment today to pick it up and show up. keep showing up, you never know  when the tides would turn.

     

    IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

    For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

    or call +2348155525555

    For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Keep your eyes on the finish line

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Keep your eyes on the finish line

    Read: 2 TIMOTHY 4:6-8

    Meditation verse:

    “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2  Timothy 4:7).

    Several years ago, I participated in a parent’s race during the annual sports event  of my children’s school. About five mothers came out to the starting point to  participate. The whistle went off and we began the race as our children cheered  us on. I gave it my all and soon I was right ahead of the others. As I continued  running, I noticed a group of people standing together close to the end of the  field. Mistaking that for the finish point, I stopped by the group. The other  women who were far behind me ran past me and got to the finish point. I had  gotten distracted from the real finish line by the group of individuals. 

    I pondered on the day’s event as I drove back home with the children and  wondered at how I failed to reach the finished line because of a slight  distraction. Not everyone who begins a race gets to the finished line. Some  runners lose their balance and fall by the way, some get distracted, others  become too weary to continue. Those who finish strong are the ones who never  take their gaze off the finish line. Similarly in the race of life, some people get  distracted by the cares of this present world, others become weary from fighting  the battles of life, still yet many do not even get started. 

    The apostle Paul kept his eyes on the finish line and ended well. In discharging  his apostolic mandate, he completed three long missionary journeys, planted at  least 14 churches, wrote 13 of the New Testament books and endured some of  the toughest conditions, persecutions, and trials. And then he gave his  valedictory speech in 2 Timothy 4:7- 8, “I have fought the good fight, I have  finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown  of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge will give to me on that  Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing”. Keep your  eyes on the finish line, so that you can end well and receive your crown.

     

    IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

    For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

    or call +2348155525555

    For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: The reckless love of the Father

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: The reckless love of the Father

    Read: Luke 15:1-31

    Meditation verse:

    “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not  leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until  he finds it?” (Luke 15:4).

    The ‘one’ is important to God. That unsaved one. That lost one. That forgotten  one. That lonely one. That one who feels different from everyone else. This ‘one’  is so important to the Father, that He leaves the ninety-nine to go after him. To  man, it makes no sense. It seems a bad move. What if He loses the ninety-nine  in His bid to go after the ‘one’? But He is the Almighty God, He knows that His  love is wide enough to cover the ninety-nine, while He goes after the lost one.  The lost one is most at risk because he is alone, forgotten, and forsaken, so the  Father goes after him until He finds him. Gospel singer Cory Ashbury calls this  love of God ‘reckless love’. And he says no, God is not reckless, but His love is  reckless. He loves recklessly without considering the risks. “For God so loved the  world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should  not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16)). 

    In Luke 15:1-2, the tax collectors and sinners all gathered around to hear Jesus.  But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes  sinners and eats with them. That’s the reckless love of the father. In Luke 19, as  Jesus was passing through Jericho, He got to a fig tree and looked up to call out  Zacchaeus the tax collector, who had climbed the tree because he was too short  to see Jesus amongst the crowd. That is the reckless love of the Father. In the  parable of the prodigal son, the lost son wandered far away and squandered his  riches, but when he came back to his senses and decided to go back home, he  was welcomed back with open arms. That is the reckless love of the Father. 

    The love of God is always searching for that one person who feels alone,  different, lonely, abandoned, sinful, afraid, or forgotten. No matter what you  have done or where you have been, His reckless love will fish you out. Why not  receive that love today?

     

    IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

    For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

    or call +2348155525555

    For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Take a different route

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Take a different route

    Read: Mark 2:1-12

    Meditation verse:

    “And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered  the roof where He was. So, when they had broken through, they let down the  bed on which the paralytic was lying” (Mark 2:4).

    Four friends carried the paralytic to Jesus. Their intention when they left home  was to go the house where Jesus was preaching and enter through the door to  meet Him. However, there was no access through the door because of the  crowd. They could have given up and decided to reach Jesus another day. But  they had made up their mind, so retreating was not an option. What did they do  next? They decided to take another route; they uncovered the roof and let down  their paralyzed friend. The rest as they say is history.  

    A closed door need not signal the end of your miracle. A closed door is an  opportunity to find another door. It is an opportunity to uncover another route which could lead you to a better place. The four friends of the paralytic were  only looking at getting their friend healed, but when he encountered Jesus, his  sins were forgiven in addition. After he was made whole, Jesus said to him “I say  to you, arise, take up your bed and go to your house”. How did he go out? No,  not through the roof. He went out through the same door he could not access  from the outside. It was only a closed door because he was on the outside. As  soon as he got in and encountered Jesus, he could access the door which he  hitherto couldn’t.  

    Do not retreat in the face of difficulties. Take a different route, you just might  end up with a bigger miracle. And when you do, you will walk out from the same  door that appeared shut to you from the outside. Keep your faith and keep your  eyes on Jesus. Do not follow the crowd, follow the cloud of your faith. The Lord  will lead you to take a different route which will cause you to end up with a  bigger testimony and in a better place.

     

    IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

    For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

    or call +2348155525555

    For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: GET BUSY

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: GET BUSY

    Read: Mathew 4:18-22

    Meditation verse:

    “And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter,  and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen”  (Mathew 4:18).

    When God needs a special task or assignment done, He looks for people who  are already busy. Search the scriptures; Simon Peter and his brother Andrew  were busy fishing when Jesus called them to be His apostles. James and John  were in the boat with their father Zebedee mending their nets and preparing for  the next catch, when Jesus called them to join His team. Mathew was at the Tax  office. David was busy caring for the flock in the bush when he was sent for by  the prophet Samuel, to be anointed king. Gideon was threshing wheat in a  winepress, when the angel announced that he had been given the assignment  of delivering God’s people from oppression by the Midianites. They were all  doing some form of service. 

    Hardly will God look for an idle person. The one who is already busy has  experience for the management of people and resources. David had gained  good experienced as a shepherd boy. So, when God needed an experienced  hand to care for His people, He knew where to look. Also, the tests of our fitness  or productivity levels are evident or visible as we get busy doing stuff. But if you  are idle, you have nothing to show. Lastly, the one who is already busy will know  how to prioritize to complete the task. He or she is more likely to be focused,  goal oriented and purposeful. “Seest thou a man diligent in his business? He  shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men” (Proverbs 22:29,  KJV)).  

    God has prepared you for what you are doing before this day and what you are  doing today matters. Do it with all the seriousness it deserves. If you are  currently idle, get busy with doing whatever is in front of you, no matter how  insignificant it might seem. Stay faithful, it just might be the preparation ground  for a higher assignment. “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might”  (Ecclesiastes 9:10).

     

    IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

    For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

    or call +2348155525555

    For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Take heed to Scriptures

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Take heed to Scriptures

    Read: 2 Timothy 3:14-17

    Meditation verse:

    “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for  reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).

    The word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged  sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes  our innermost thoughts and desires (Hebrews 4:12). And Psalm 138:2 states that  God has exalted His word above all His name. What this implies is that God  honours His word. His word is His bond. If He has said it, He will do it. If He has  promised, then it is as good as done. Another implication of this is that every  promise in the scripture can be fulfilled in your life. 2 Peter 1:20 says that  “knowing this first, that no prophecy of scripture is of any private interpretation,  for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they  were moved by the Holy Spirit.  

    What value do you place on the word of God? Where is the place of scripture in  your life? “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for  doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the  man of God may be complete thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2  Timothy 3:16-17). Every answer you are looking for and every solution to the  issues of life can be found in the scriptures. God’s word is a lamp unto your feet  and a light unto your path (Psalm 119:105) A single revelation from scripture can  alter the trajectory of your life. Psalm 119:11 says, “Your word have I hidden in  my heart that I might not sin against You”. Psalm 119:9 says’ “how shall a young  man cleanse his ways? By taking heed thereto according to the word of God”.  

    Take heed to scriptures. Let the word of God become your doctrine and way of  life. Let it shape your values. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every  word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Mathew 4:4). “Faith comes by  hearing and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). So, search the  scriptures daily and meditate on it. Speak it over your situations and watch your  life transform. Jeremiah 15:16 says “when I discovered your words, I devoured  them. They are my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name”.

     

    IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

    For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

    or call +2348155525555

    For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Don’t let your experience define you

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Don’t let your experience define you

    Read: Luke 8:43-48

    Meditation verse:

    “And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her  living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any (Luke 8:43).

    What do the following people have in common?  

    – The woman with the issue of blood 

    – The paralytic at the pool of Bethesda 

    – The lame man at the beautiful gate 

    – The prodigal son 

    – Blind Bartimaeus 

    – Naaman the leper 

    They were all defined by the things they went through. Their experiences  became their identity, so much so that even though they were restored, they  are still identified till date, by what they suffered. For instance, we still refer to her as “the woman with the issue of blood”, instead of “the woman whom Jesus  healed from the issue of blood”.

    Jesus Christ suffered humiliation in the hands of sinful men, even though He was  without sin. He died a shameful death on the cross between two criminals. But  today, He is not known as “the man who was crucified on the cross”. He is  referred to as “the Saviour of the world”. Death could not hold Him captive; the  grave had no power over Him. He defeated death and the grave, resurrected on  the third day, and ascended into heaven, from where He will come again soon.  Romans 8:11 says “but if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells  in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal  bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you”. 

    Do not let your experiences become your identity. Activate the power of the  Holy Spirit in you and rise above whatever is trying to define you in a way that is  contrary to who God says you are. You are not “the woman who is always  begging for money” or “the man who has no job”. You are royalty. 1Peter 2:9  says “but you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s  own special person called to show forth His praises. With God’s power you can  overcome that financial, marital or health issue. Psalm 18: 29 says “for by You, I  can run against a troop. By my God, I can leap over a wall”.

     

    IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

    For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

    or call +2348155525555

    For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Surely the dawn will come

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Surely the dawn will come

    Read: Genesis 1:3-5

    Meditation verse:

    “And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it”  (John 1:5).

    Few minutes after the clock strikes midnight, a new day begins. However,  though a new day has begun, it is still dark outside. But gradually, the darkness  gives way to the emerging light of the dawn. John 1:5 says, “And the light shines  in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it”. No matter how dark  the night is, surely it will give way to light at the breaking of dawn because it was  God who commanded it to be so. Genesis 1:3-5 says, “and God said, “let there  be light” and there was light. And God saw the light and it was good, and God  divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light day, and the  darkness He called night”.  

    Irrespective of how dark the season you are in right now is, surely, it will end  someday soon. Your season of light will come, and the dark season cannot stop  it. Psalm 30:5 says, “weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the  morning”. God’s ability to restore life is beyond our understanding. Trees are  burnt down and can grow back, broken bones heal, dead tissues are restored.  That’s the life-transforming power of God. 

    If a new day starts whilst it is still dark outside, why are you afraid of using the  dark seasons of your life as the start of a new beginning in your life? Determine  this day to create a new beginning from the place of that dark or painful  situation.

     

    IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

    For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

    or call +2348155525555

    For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: When men say ‘no’ to you

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: When men say ‘no’ to you

    Read: Exodus 10:1-29

    Meditation verse:

    “Now the Lord said to Moses, ‘go in to Pharoah, for I have hardened his heart  and the hearts of his servants, that I may show these signs of Mine before him”  (Ex 10:1).

    God may choose to harden the heart of men against you so that He may display  his miraculous signs in your life. He wanted to display His awesome power  before Pharoah as well as build up the faith of the children of Israel ahead of  their journey to the promised land, so He said to Moses: “Go in to Pharaoh; for  I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his servants, that I may show these  signs of Mine before him, and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and  your son’s son the mighty things I have done in Egypt, and My signs which I have  done among them, that you may know that I am the Lord.” (Ex 10:1-2). 

    Not everyone you ask for a favour, will oblige you and not everyone who refuses  to oblige you is doing so from a point of wickedness. Proverbs 21:1 says: “the  king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water; He turns it  wherever He wishes. God can cause a man to favour you in any situation, He can  also cause a man to withhold that favour from you. “For it is God who works in  you both to will and to do for His good pleasure (Phil 2:13). Certain rejections  and disappointments are a set up for God to do the miraculous in your life. If  you fully understand this, you will fret less in the face of disappointments. You  will hold your peace when those you expect to come through for you fail to do  so. 

    If you are currently nursing a grudge because the one you expected to be of help  to you in your time of need, deserted you, do yourself a favour and let go of that  grudge. The help of man is useless anyway and cannot be compared to the might  of The Almighty. (Ps 60:11). If you have exhausted all your options at this  moment, why not boldly declare: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What  can man do to me?

     

    IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Pst (Mrs) Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

    For Prayers and Counseling email rockteachingministry@gmail.com

    or call +2348155525555

    For more enquiries, visit: www.rockteachingministry.org.