OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL BY PST. E.A.ADEBOYE THURSDAY 23rd MAY 2019.
TOPIC: COVENANT PARTAKERS.
MEMORY VERSE: Hebrews 8:9
“Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.” – ().
BIBLE TEXT: 1 Samuel 1:9-11 (KJV)
9. So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple of the LORD.
10. And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the LORD, and wept sore.
11. And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.
OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL MESSAGE FOR TODAY
For you to fully enjoy the benefits of your walk with God, you need to understand His character. One character trait of God is that He keeps His end of every covenant He enters into. In other words, He is a covenant-keeping God. Based on my experience, I can boldly say that entering into a convenient partnership with God is a wise thing to do.
Times without number, God has proved it to me that no one can beat Him in adherence to the terms of a convenient relationship. In today’s Bible reading, we see a situation where God’s need intersected with the need of man to produce a covenant partnership. God urgently needed a faithful priest to replace Eli and his notorious children, while Hannah need a son to silence her adversary, Peninnah who continually mocked her on account of her barrenness.
To get her heart’s desire, Hannah entered into a covenant partnership with God. She promise that if God would give her a male child, she would give him back to God. The deal was struck: Hannah got a son and God got His priest. This great God even went on to bless Hannah with five more children (1 Samuel 2:21)!
Testimonies abound on covenant partnership in our ministry; testimonies of how God has been keeping His own side of the bargain with those who have chosen to partner with Him in the advancement of His kingdom. There is one covenant partner in our ministry who rose from being an employee to becoming a member of his company’s board of directors.
This exemplifies what those who partner with God stand to gain, provided they keep to their agreement with God. There is also this story of someone who chose to partner with God but decided to breach the covenant even before the first miracle matured. A young man came to us and shared his desire to become a covenant partner with God.
We prayed, and he received his first breakthrough when someone hired him to put his estate up for sale. When we advised him to give God a tithe out of his profit from the deal, he flared up and said “not until another one comes! “ He left in anger, but before long, the fellow who wanted to sell his estate changed his mind at the point of payment, to the extent that he literally chased this covenant breaker away! That was how the young man lost a huge business deal.
Beloved, God is a very faithful business partner to have if you decide to enter into a covenant relationship with Him. Even though He is the Senior Partner in our relationship, He chose to make us comfortable by asking for only a tenth of the blessings He gives us. To receive more blessings, the wise will want to increase God’s portion of this sharing formula, like some of us have done. Choose to partner with God today and you will see how pleasant He is to do business with.
ACTION POINT:
Key into the power of covenant partnership today to receive the answer to a long-awaited request from God.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Exodus 39-40, Jeremiah 40:13-41:8
HYMNAL:
Hymn 4 – Take my life, and let it be
1. Take my life, and let it be
Consecrated, Lord to Thee;
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.
2. Take my hands, and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love;
Take my feet, and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee.
3. Take my voice and let me sing
Always, only, for my King;
Take my lips and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee.
4. Take my silver and my gold;
Not a mite would I withhold;
Take my intellect, and use
Every power as Thou shalt choose.
5. Take my will and make it Thine,
It shall be no longer mine:
Take my heart, it is Thine own;
It shall be Thy royal throne.
6. Take my love, my Lord, I pour
At Thy feet its treasure store;
Take myself, and I will be
Ever, only, all for Thee.
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