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Tag: devotional

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: What is yours will eventually get to you

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: What is yours will eventually get to you

    Read: Ecclesiastes 11:1-6

    Meditation verse:

    “As you do not know what is the way of the wind, or how the bones grow in the  womb of her who is with child, so you do not know the works of God who makes  everything” (Ecclesiastes 11:5).

    “THE DEEP END OF THE OCEAN” is a tearjerker movie that tells the story of a  mother whose 3-year-old son, Ben was stolen from her in a crowded hotel lobby.  Nine agonizing years went by and gradually every hope of finding Ben began to  dissipate. The family relocated to another city with the remaining two children but the pain of losing a child lingered. And then one morning, a young boy rang  the doorbell to their new home, and asked if he could help mow their lawn. A mother will always know her child and instinctively she knew she was looking at  her lost child. The boy now known as Sam, lived just two blocks away and had  no clue he was knocking on the door of his birth mother. Destiny had led him to  her.  

    Some years ago, I had this journal in which I wrote inspirational messages, goals  that I was working towards as well as specific promises I received from God each  time I spent time in His presence. It was a treasured possession, but then  suddenly, I couldn’t find it. I searched everywhere I could possibly have kept it  but did not find it. Weeks of searching turned into months, and then one  morning when I was not searching, I found it in the least likely place.  

    What is rightfully yours, especially if pre-determined by God will eventually find  its way to you. Suddenly when you least expect, you will find it in the least likely  place. When the family decided to relocate to another city, they had no idea that  destiny was leading them to their missing son. “Trust in the Lord with all your  heart and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge  Him, and He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

     

    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: A NEW SEASON

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: A NEW SEASON

    Read: Isaiah 55:10-11

    Meditation verse: 

    “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return  there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed  to the Sower and bread to the eater” (Isaiah 55:10).

    Part of my early morning prayer ritual is to open the little window in my  bathroom whilst it is still dark outside and declare into the emerging dawn, how  I want my day to turn out. On this morning, it began to rain as I opened the  window. And then I heard the following words in my spirit, “as it is in the  physical, so it is in the spiritual, as it is in the spiritual, so it is in the physical”. 

    The rains are usually an announcement that a new season has begun. The rains  signal the beginning of the rainy season as well as the end of the dry season. I  sensed God saying to me that just as the heavens have been opened and there  was an outpouring of rain upon the earth, so shall the heavens be opened so  that there would be an outpouring of every form of abundance over our lives.  

    Just as the Lord spoke to my heart that morning, I declare over your life this day,  that as it is in the physical, so shall it be in the spiritual. There shall be an  outpouring of the rain of favor, healing, salvation, deliverance, mercy, grace,  anointing and great wealth over your life this day and beyond. Where you had  hitherto experienced dryness, the siege is over. For thus says the Lord, “do not  remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a  new thing, now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a  road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:18-19). Welcome to a  new season.

     

    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: Is anyone looking for you?

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Is anyone looking for you?

    Read: MATHEW 5:13-16

    Meditation verse:

    “When they found Him, they said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You.” (Mark  1:37).

    Everywhere Jesus went, during His time on earth, He did good. He opened the  eyes of the blind, made the deaf hear, healed the sick, raised the dead, cast out  demons from the oppressed and fed tens of thousands. Little wonder a great  multitude followed Him wherever He went. When He withdrew to a solitary  place to pray, His disciples searched for Him and said, “everyone is looking for  you”.  

    “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor  do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives  light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they  may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Mathew 5:14-16). 

    Everyone is attracted to light. Our lives are energies which people encounter  when they meet us. This energy can either be a positive or negative one. When  you add value to the life of others, you will constantly be in demand. The greater  the value, the more the people looking for you are. When you love people and  make them feel good in your space, they will seek to be with you always.  

    If on the other hand, you treat people badly and make them feel unwelcome in  your space, they will stay away from you. “You are the salt of the earth; but if  the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but  to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men” (Mathew 5:13). If your  presence is not felt, your absence will not be missed. It is as simple as that.  

    Here’s a good question to ask yourself today: “is anyone looking for 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.

  • [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Carrots, eggs and coffee beans

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Carrots, eggs and coffee beans

    Read: 2 CORINTHIANS 4:7-18

    Meditation verse:

    “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more  exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (2 Corinthians 4:17).

    A lady was tired of dealing with the challenges of life. it seemed that as one  problem was solved, a new one arose. In desperation, she went to her mother  for help. He mother took her to the kitchen and placed three pots of water on a  high fire. She put a carrot, an egg and coffee beans, into the three pots  consecutively and left them to boil without saying a word to her daughter. In  about five minutes, the mother fished out the carrots and eggs and placed in  two separate bowls. She lathered the coffee and placed in a cup. Turning to her  daughter, she asked ‘tell me, what do you see?’ to which the daughter replied,  ‘carrot, egg and coffee’. The mother asked her to come closer to feel each item.  She felt the carrot and noted that it was soft, she felt the egg and removed the  shell, the inside had become hard. She took the cup of coffee and savoured the  rich sweet aroma.  

    Turning to her mother, she asked ‘what does this mean’? Her mother replied  that each item had faced the same adversity- hot boiling water. The carrot went  into the hot water hard and unrelenting, but came out soft, wobbly, and weak.  The egg had been fragile, with its outer shell protecting the liquid interior, but it  came out hardened on the inside. The coffee beans had been unique. They  changed the source of their adversity-the hot water, turning it into a sweet smelling liquid.  

    You are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Do not let the challenges  of life cause you to lose your flavour. Do not let adversity transform you into a weakling or a hard-hearted person. Be like the coffee beans; emerge from every  adversity you face, a better and more valuable person. Let your affliction work  in you, a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.

     

    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: International Women’s Day

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: International Women’s Day

    Read: Proverbs 31:10-31

    Meditation verse:

    “That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; that our daughters  may be as pillars, sculptured in palace style” (Psalm 144:12).

    The life of a male and female child may follow the same trajectory from birth,  until when the female gets married and begins to have children. In essentially  all countries, the responsibility of caring for the child and keeping the home falls  predominantly on the woman and this usually will come at the time of full launch  of her career. The stress of combining work and family has caused a significant  number of women to take career breaks and work at home as full-time wives  and mothers, devoting all their time, intellect, and energy to running their  homes and to their children’s upbringing. 

    Those who manage to remain in careers, find themselves grappling with juggling  the demands of both and must keep taking time off work to nurse a sick child or  attend a crucial event at their child’s school. Invariably this will impact upon their  chances for promotion and career progression. Marriage and motherhood,  though beautiful have had a significant influence on the life course of many  women. Career scholars are agreed in the assertion that the young parenthood  stage is the most stressful period for a woman.  

    It’s International Women’s Day today, and we are taking time to celebrate and  honor women all over the world for the amazing work that we do. According to  Ann Crittenden, best-selling author of “IF YOU HAVE RAISED KIDS, YOU CAN  MANAGE ANYTHING”, Leadership begins at home. She says a mother’s 

    responsibilities include components of at least 17 different professions. A  mother is a financial manager and consultant, Crisis manager, Nutritionist,  Counsellor, Project Management consultant, Child development Supervisor,  Doctor, Nurse, Teacher, Educationist, Psychologist, Adviser and Team Manager.  

    So, woman, Celebrate and love on yourself today. Irrespective of your life’s  journey, realize that you are enough and deserve the best that life has to offer.  Be brave enough to demand more and be disciplined and do the work required  to be more and to get more. Happy International Women’s Day.

     

    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: Turning obstacles to opportunities

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Turning obstacles to opportunities

    Read: PHILIPPIANS 1:12-26

    Meditation verse: 

    “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4: 13). 

    Locked up in a Roman prison and abandoned by friends, Paul had many reasons  to become bitter or give up on life. He chose rather, to see his situation as an  opportunity to accomplish his assignment. Realizing that what he did with his  situation was more important than the situation itself, he preached the gospel  to the palace guards. This led to their conversion and the encouragement of  others who had been afraid to preach the word. 

    Albert Ellis was a renowned 20th Century American Psychologist who founded  REBT, a therapy for emotionally disturbed patients. Ellis was the eldest of three  children in a Jewish family. His father was frequently absent, and his mother was  neglectful and unavailable to her children. His parents divorced during his  childhood, and he was sent to school at the age of four. Ellis was expected to  cross busy roads without adult assistance, to get to school. He was seriously ill  for much of his childhood and was hospitalized for long periods with infrequent  parental visits. Ellis responded to this neglect by reframing it as an opportunity  to become independent. He formulated several rules for effective living that  were to act as a guide for him for the remainder of his life. Albert Ellis died at the age of ninety-four years. He left behind a legacy in the form of a world 

    renowned Psychotherapy training institute and a collection of self-help books to  help people get ahead in life despite their challenges.  

    Each time I looked back at a particularly difficult period in my life, I have seen God’s hand at work in the situation. I have therefore concluded that God works  out all things for good. Your challenges can become opportunities for you to  grow, develop character and guide your journey towards greater fulfilment. They can become stepping-stones to your victories. Don’t get consumed by an  abusive or a fruitless marriage, a cheating spouse, death of a loved one, past  failure or other unfortunate circumstance. Look at that obstacle in the face and  be determined to be the better for it. God’s power is available to back you up. Life is not made of straight victories, but of falls, stumbles, mistakes, and bruises.  In what ways can you turn your biggest challenge(s) into opportunities?

     

    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: Increase comes from God

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Increase comes from God

    Read: 1 Corinthians 3:1-15

    Meditation verse:

    “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase”. (1 Corinthians 3:6).

    We were created to work and not to be idle. Ephesians 2:10 says, “we are His  workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared  beforehand that we should walk in them”. As soon as God created the first man,  he gave him an assignment; to till the garden, be fruitful and dominate the earth.  You were put on this earth to fulfill your own assignment and take dominion  over the earth. There will always be work for you to do. Ecclesiastes 9:10 says  that whatever your hand finds to do, do it well. The size of a task is immaterial,  your responsibility is to always give it your best. The outcomes and results you  get whilst accomplishing a task are up to God.  

    The Apostle Paul said he planted, and Apollos watered but God was the one who  gave the increase. In order words, the results of their efforts were in God’s  hands. This is an important insight for anyone feeling discouraged by the  outcomes of their efforts in whatever task they are doing. If you have toiled in a  particular endeavor but have seen minimal results, keep toiling. Proverbs 16:33  (NLT) says “we may throw the dice, but the Lord determines how they fall”  Ecclesiastes 11:5 says as we do understand the path of the wind or how the  bones grow in a woman with a child, so we do not understand the working of  God. Psalm 75:6 says that promotion does not come from the East, West, or  South. Romans 9:16 says that it does not therefore depend on man’s efforts. 

    Increase comes from God. Keep working at the tasks you have been given.  Commit to whatever your hand finds to do. Stay faithful and do not relent. “Now  the just shall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in  him” (Hebrews 10:38). Do not cast away your confidence, for in due season, you  will reap if you do not lose heart (Galatians 6:9). Be rest assured that whatever  God is involved in must grow. So, commit your work to Him and you will succeed.

     

    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: Stability can only be found in Christ

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Stability can only be found in Christ

    Read: Psalm 91:1-16

    Meditation verse:

    “I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will  trust.” (Psalm 91:2).

    We are currently living in difficult times. There is currently so much brokenness, decay, lawlessness, and wickedness. The world is currently going through a lot  of distress. Insecurity, terrorism, food crisis, inflation, high cost of living and of  course the recent earthquakes in Turkey and Syria that claimed thousands of  lives.  

    When the apostle Paul wrote to Timothy about difficult times, he charged  Timothy with the following words: 

    But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been  assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from  childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make  you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 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. 

    What does this say to us? Amid the current hopelessness, brokenness and decay,  stability can only be found in Jesus Christ and in His word. We must look to Him  as our anchor and hope. Here’s His promise to you: “he shall call upon Me, and  I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honour him. 

    With long life I will satisfy him and show him My salvation.” (Psalm 91:15-16).

     

    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: God knows what you need ahead of time

    [Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: God knows what you need ahead of time

    Read: Mathew 6:25-34

    Meditation verse:

    “Therefore, do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need  of before you ask Him”. (Mathew 6:8).

    My fingernails are soft and break easily. So, every now and then, I add acrylic stick-on nails to protect them. Recently, I was scheduled for a medical  procedure. A few days to the procedure, the stick-on nail on my right thumb fell  off. I recall feeling slightly irritated and saying to myself, “now my nails will look  odd, with the stick-on missing in one finger”. Little did I know that my Father in  heaven was going ahead of me. 

    I arrived the hospital on the morning of my procedure and the nurse came over  to take my vitals. Measuring my oxygen level, required me to insert my  forefinger in a little device. It turned out that the machine could not get any  reading because of the acrylic stick-on on my nails. The only way my oxygen level  could be measured was through the thumb with the missing artificial nail. How  on earth could I have known this? I probably would have had to forcefully pull  out the artificial nail that morning to get the required reading. 

    God knows what you need ahead of time. Luke 6:26-30 says “Look at the birds  of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly  Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by  worrying can add one cubit to his stature? “So why do you worry about clothing?  Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet  I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is  thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” 

    Irrespective of what is going on in your life right now, relax in the knowledge  that your Father in heaven knows what you need and exactly when you need it.  That little inconvenience is working out something good for you.

     

    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.