TOPIC: Put God First
MEMORISE: Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: Proverbs 3:9
BIBLE READING: 1 Kings 17:7-16
7 And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.
8 And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying,
9 Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.
10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
11 And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand.
12 And she said, As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.
13 And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.
14 For thus saith the Lord God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord sendeth rain upon the earth.
15 And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.
16 And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah.
MESSAGE:
One of the things I have discovered about God in my little walk with Him is that He wants to be our priority at all times. In Matthew 6:33, He said that we should seek His kingdom and righteousness first.
Years ago, while l was holding a crusade in llesha in South-West Nigeria, one of my professors took my PhD thesis to an external examiner. Normally, he would have sent the thesis to the examiner by post, but he bought a ticket and took the thesis to the examiner by himself. In those days, it usually took months for external examiners to invite PhD candidates for oral examinations. However, when my professor presented my thesis to the external examiner, the former said, “l am not going back until you read this.” After the external examiner read it, he said, “Go and give the boy his PhD.”
My dear child, if you do the will of God first, He will take care of all your needs. When you honour Him and put Him first in all you do, what you will get in return will be a multiplication of what you sacrificed for Him.
REFLECTION:
Do you put God first in all that you do?
HYMN: 55 – Christian, Seek Not Yet Repose
1 Christian, Seek Not Yet Repose;
Hear Thy Guardian Angel Say,
“Thou Art In The Midst Of Foes:
Watch And Pray!”
2 Principalities And Powers,
Mustering Their Unseen Array,
Wait For Thy Unguarded Hours:
“Watch And Pray.”
3 Gird Thy Heavenly Armour On;
Wear It Every Night And Day
Ambush’d Lies The Evil One:
“Watch And Pray.”
4 Hear The Victors Who O’ercame;
Still They Mark Each Warrior’s Way;
All With One Sweet Voice Exclaim,
“Watch And Pray!”
5 Hear, Above AlI, Hear Thy Lord,
Him Thou Lovest To Obey;
Hide Within Thy Heart His Word:
“Watch And Pra!.”
6 Watch, As If On That Alone
Hung The Issue Of The Day;
Pray, That Help May Be Sent Down:
Watch And Pray.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Leviticus 24:1-25:46, Mark 10:13-31
AUTHORS: Pastor E. A. Adeboye and Pastor Folu Adeboye