DAY 1, February 22nd
Meditation: Daniel 6:23 “Then the king was exceedingly glad and commanded that Daniel be taken up of the den. So Daniel was taken out of the den, and no kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.”
Daniel’s survival in the den of lion was miraculous in nature as the result of God’s intervening power at work. It took Daniel to trust God through faith to enable him have a peace that could not be measured at all. How would you feel if God did deliver you from a situation that you thought your life could not be redeemed? Anyone in the situation of Daniel must have had confidence in God without doubting God omnipotence and omnipresence. Psalm 118 states that it is better to trust the Lord than to put confidence in people. This is what Daniel did exactly which impressed the King. Today, we can imitate Daniel and become examples for others to follow us.
Scriptural Memory: Heb. 11: 1, 6.
Prayer: “God, the Creator of heaven and earth, may we be like Daniel who showed courage in the face of adversity so we can strive to live as you want us to live in this sinful and perverted generation.
DAY 2, February 23rd
Meditation: Philippians 2:14-15 “Do all things without murmuring and arguing so that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine like stars in the world.”
In many instances as children of God, we are faced with situations either at home or in the church to do a piece of work. We tend to sometimes argue why we have been given such job to do when some of our siblings have not been assigned at all. I experienced this when I was a boy living with my step mother. One of things I encountered at the time was, I was being laid aside or abandoned because my mother had died and was no longer in the house. Sometimes I got angry and decided to do evil because of ill-treatment, but the Holy Spirit could not allow me do the things I planed to carry out. I was young in the faith and none of my family knew God. I thank God for keeping me from evil despite of the situation I faced at the time. What would be your reaction if you were faced with a situation that made you angry? No matter what kind of situation we face, we should allow the Holy Spirit to lead us. Jesus would have call angels from heaven to fight his accusers or intimidators, but he allowed God’s will in the event.
Scriptural Memory: Philippians 2:5
Prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father: we know that even during the darkest times in our lives, the fuel that keeps our candle burning is our faith. The more faith that we have the brighter our candle will shine. Help me, dear Lord, to use my candle and a smile to help bring others to you. In Jesus name we pray. “Amen”
DAY 3, February 24th
Meditation: Mark 12:29-31 “Jesus answered, “The first is: Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with your entire mind and with your strength.” The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment great than these.”
The primary command from this passage of scripture is to first love the Lord with all our heart, with all our soul, with our entire mind, and with all our strength. The second is to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. The first command is vertical which has to do with God, the Father. The second command is horizontal, which has to do with our fellowman. Fulfilling the primary will enable us fulfill the secondary. Loving God is loving our neighbor as well. If you love God; then, you can truly love your neighbor because God is love. The Bible declares in I John that anyone who loves God does not commit sin because the seed of God is in him and he can not sin because he is born of God. The key is born of God (regeneration). It is impossible to love our neighbor if we have not loved God. Have you found yourselves in situation where you fail to love your neighbor because he or she did wrong to you? Despite of what Jesus’ enemies did to him, he told his Father to forgive them because they did not know what they do.
Scriptural Memory: Mark 12:29
Prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father, Turn my life towards you that I may truly love you with all my heart, soul, mind and strength. And through my love for you may I pour out love for my fellow man. Help me to be more like Jesus with a heart of service and forgiveness in his name I pray and worship you. Amen”
DAY 4, February 25th
Meditation: Philippians 2:5-8 “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedience to the point of death even death on a cross.”
Have you ever felt or be influenced by the syndrome of domineering spirit in which you are tempted to have yourselves placed over someone you think you are equal with or superior to such individual? This is what exactly happened in the life of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The Bible declares indeed he was equal with God, but he did not take advantage of that to pronounce himself equal with God, but he humbled himself and became obedience to death, even the death on the cross. For this reason God had highly exhorted him so that when his name is called, every knee bows and every tongue confesses that Jesus is Lord. If you are tempted daily to make judgment about others such as the way they dress or speak, the teams they support, the area of town in which they live, the religion they embrace, the people they associate with and so on. Can you realize your attitude? Christ is the perfect example that everyone should strive to emulate. The more we emulate Christ, the more we experience the peace that passes all human understanding.
Scriptural Memory: Philippians 2:8
Prayer: “Dear Lord, thank you for always being there for us. You are a constant light-house that guides us throughout our lives. By following your example, we will always find ourselves in safe harbor. Amen.”
DAY 5, February 26th
Meditation: Philippians 4:6-7 “Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer of supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
Have you ever thought that worrying about your problem adds anything to your life? Worrying about something that you do not have control over, brings you to nothing. It only adds physical sickness and makes you deteriorate physically. Here are few tips you can remember regarding worry:
- Worry accomplishes nothing.
- Worry is a mental burden that causes sickness.
- Worry is the opposite of trusting God.
- Worry puts us in wrong direction of life situation.
Scriptural Memory: Philippians 4:7
Prayer: “Dear Father, we thank you for all our blessings. Help us not to worry over things we have no control over. Your will be done, Amen.”
DAY 6, February 27th
Meditation: Mark 1:17 “And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fisher for people.”
This passage from Mark sets the scene of Jesus walking beside the Sea of Galilee and inviting Peter, James and John who were all fishermen to leave their nets and follow him and fish for people. We think that the disciples of Jesus were great men of strong faith; unfortunately, it was not so. Many a time, Jesus had told them to follow him, but some were still doubting Jesus personality though they have seen him performed miracles before their eyes. How many of us today, can doubt the doing of God in our lives? The cost of discipleship is being rejected by the so called believers because they have refused to self-denial. How many are willing to die to self? Discipleship is not just leading people to Christ by telling the good news, but it also involves the example we set in the way we live our lives and the love in our heart in reaching out to people.
Scriptural Memory: Mark 1:17
Prayer: “Heavenly Father, we praise you for being our Savior. Help us to recognize our own sinfulness and give us hearts and minds that are receptive to your direction and the work you would have us do.”
DAY 7, February 28th
Meditation: Philippians 1:21 “For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain.”
How many of us are afraid of death? Realistically speaking, no one wants to die now because the belief that I am bound for heaven is still being doubted by some Christians today. Some people do not have assurance of salvation though they go to church. This is a sad thing to imagine. Christ had died and conquered death. He did not remain in the grave. Death could not hold him captive because he died purposely to conquer death so that you and I can have place of eternity promised to us in scriptures; therefore, there is no need to worry. You are saved and Christ is coming to receive unto himself so that where he will be, you also will be there.
Scriptural Memory: Philippians 1:21
Prayer: “Dear Lord, thank you for loving us. Please forgive us when we have trouble trusting You. Help us to remember always that You never stop loving us, even when We’re surrounded by challenges and doubts. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.”
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