Good-life Daily Devotional

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi [NLT] Matthew 7:11 "So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him."         Good parenting skills requires that children's needs are met promptly and they are protected from harm . God is the embodiment of loving care. (1Jn.4:8) His love for us transcends the highest imaginable standard known to man . Therefore , we should be confident that He will respond to our yearning better than our earthly parents can .      It is also worthy of note that God operates with boundless resources , therefore, there is nothing beyond His capacity to meet our needs.He is the creator , there's absolutely nothing too hard for Him to do except telling lies.He is very trustworthy and will always give us the things that we need without reservation. He says after all , all things are yours. 1Corinthians 3.21.Can you imagine that all you've been yearni

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi  Luke 12:19-20 " And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?"         The level of security the world over is at its lowest ebb as a result of the increase in secessionist and terror groups . There is a growing apprehension about the safety of businesses, marriages, finances as a result of the growing in insecurity worldwide with adverse health implications.         Fear, uncertainty, anxiety about the future is the aftermath of  the systemic rejection of God's word. The word of God is light repelling darkness from the hearts of men. In luke.12:16-18 Jesus's parable is a reflection of the failing world's security system . This system revolves around the concept of the acquisition of wealth for security against the r

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi  1 Peter 1:8 AMP "Without having seen Him, you love Him; though you do not [even] now see Him, you believe in Him and exult and thrill with inexpressible and glorious (triumphant, heavenly) joy."       The world is becoming increasingly more difficult to live in due to the activities of the ungodly. There is virtually no part of the world without social upheavals. This was prophesied to be a sign of the end times in Matthew 24. Jesus said Matthew 24:6-7 AMP "And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened or troubled , for  this must take place,  but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in place after place;"     It also fulfills the prophesy in Haggai 2:6-8 which says there shall be an escalation of human crisis and cataclysmic activities in the days leading to the Lord's return .In the f

By  Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi  Luke 14:28 "For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost,  whether he have sufficient to finish  it?   Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish  it, all that  behold it begin to mock him,   Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish."       The building of a house involves a lot of technical details which mustn't be compromised upon if a durable structure is to be achieved. Master -builders allude to the fact that the most critical aspect in the building of a house is  the foundation stage. Any error at that stage may require starting the building process all over again. Most foundational errors are as a result of hasty conclusions.              Human life is like a building and it is very common to see a lot of  abandoned projects by God's people. Most times such inconclusive ventures are said to have been caused by demons, witches an

By Rev.Michael. Benson Ajayi        Luke4:7 "If thou  therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine. And Jesus answered and said unto him,  Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is  written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve."       Jesus stripped Satan off all power over humanity through the power of the cross, the scriptures says in Matthew 28 : 18 "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying,  All power is given unto me  in heaven and in earth ". The powers governing all spiritual realms are under the control of Jesus Christ .He is the supreme head of all mystical societies and occult groups.              The scriptures speaks of His preeminence   in  Colossians 2:9-10 AMP " For in Him the whole fullness of Deity (the Godhead) continues to dwell in bodily form [giving complete expression of the divine nature ]. And you are in Him, made full and having come to fullness of life [ in Christ you too are filled with the God

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi  Mark 8:30-33, "...But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men."         This is proof that good advice does not always translate into being the right advice. Peter's good advice  was Satan -inspired. This scenario  is a parallel of the serpent's statements  to Eve in the garden of Eden (Gen. 3:15) and God rebuking the devil.In both cases, Peter and the serpent were mediums through which Satan expressed his wishes. He still does same through false teachers who use the witchcraft art of clairvoyance to foretell events and many have fallen victims with families fragmented and polarized through the activities of these so-called seers.Satan also works through some of our friends who oppose the truth of the gospel.          God - inspired visions or revelations always align with the script

       By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi  “A fool utters all his mind; but a wise man keeps it in till afterwards; Prov. 29:11. “He that is soon angry deals foolishly” Prov. 14:17         The “Near Success Syndrome” is mostly due to uncontrolled temper. Moses was a victim of the “Near success syndrome” which is repeated failure at the edge of breakthroughs.He did not enter the promised land due to his uncontrollable anger.Anger hinders the anointing for breakthroughs (James 1:20). Deep-seated anger and bitterness destroys finishing power and the will to live.          Habitually angry    persons  are prone to making terrible business ,relational and marital decisions. They are fearful ,without faith, double-minded ,unstable and uncommitted in their relationships (James1:8). Anger is learned and can be unlearned .We are admonished to avoid being emotionally involved with persons with deep-seated anger and unforgiveness.               It is difficult to repent when nursing a deep-si

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi     “Your anger can never make things right in God’s sight.”  James 1:20. “Don’t be in a hurry to go to court you might go down before your neighbours in shameful defeat.” Prov. 25:8 LB.        The near success syndrome is the habit of failing at the edge of breakthrough and this is often as a result of the absence of finishing power born of out of deep-seated anger.  Anger could be described as a strong feeling of displeasure and usually of opposition toward someone or something.It is often brought about by real or imagined injury, rage, fury, wrath. Anger is a broad term that applies to various levels of emotion that may or may not be shown and if not controlled ,it results in temper, which is ‘the tendency to be easily angered.      God’s warns us against yielding to anger and wrath. The inability to control the temper has placed many persons in very embarrassing situations. Spouses have abandoned marriages only to regret such actions bec

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi. 1 Cor 9:18-21 NLT “Under this circumstance, what is my pay? It is the special joy I get from preaching the Good News without expense to anyone, never demanding my rights. And this has a real advantage: I am not bound to obey anyone just because he pays my salary; yet I have freely and happily become a servant of any and all so that I can win them to Christ. When I am with the Jews I seem as one of them so that they will listen to the Gospel and I can win them to Christ. When I am with Gentiles who follow Jewish customs and ceremonies I don't argue, even though I don't agree, because I want to help them.  When with the heathen I agree with them as much as I can, except of course that I must always do what is right as a Christian. And so, by agreeing, I can win their confidence and help them too.”       Here the Apostle Paul shows what it takes to be an effective disciple of Christ: adaptation and respect for individual rights and liberties

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi.  1 Cor 3:3-4 KJV “… for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?        Tolerance is a willingness to accept feelings, habits, or beliefs that are different from your own. : the ability to accept, experience, or survive something harmful or unpleasant. In the Bible patience, long-suffering, forbearance are closely linked to tolerance with others.         There are over a hundred thousand tribes and cultures around the world ; each struggling for survival and seeking prominence , therefore, it is no wonder that there seem to be divisions among God’s people as a result of the variance  in traditional values. It is for that reason that Jesus instituted the law of sacrificial love for one’s neighbor even as He loved us: it is the only law to be followed by all believers of Jesus Christ.  Customs and traditio

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi 2 Chronicles 18:4-5 AMP "And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, Inquire first, I pray you, for the word of the Lord today. So King [Ahab] of Israel gathered together the prophets, 400 men, and said to them, Shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up, for God will deliver it into the king's hand."         Ahab, the king of Israel ,was at war with Samaria and he sought to make an alliance with Jehoshaphat  ;king of  Judah whom the lord had shown extraordinary favour by given him victory over his enemies.  Jehoshaphat had a tradition of always seeking God’s counsel before embarking on major projects as commanded by the Lord ( Matthew 6:33).              Ahab on the other hand  had no passion for God's word and no personal relationship with God,  he was rich , arrogant, presumptuous and was willing to buy his way through any situation.  He only sought God through intermediaries only when he wa

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi John 10:2-3 "But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them John 10:1-21                  The safety of the sheep is tied to its ability to hear and recognize the voice of the shepherd. God speaks to every human being everyday .He is speaking to you this very moment. Many persons doubt the truth of this statement based on their personal experiences and do not believe they can hear God's voice.         God  's word is proven and true : He is presently engaged in a dialogue with you with regards to your opinion on what you are reading this very moment. His voice is the still ,authoritative, stable, small peaceful voice in your subconscious speaking with authority without contradiction .         The challenge is being able to recognize His voice  from the four voices that we hear namely :1) o

 By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi Luke 15:18 ‘ I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.’          True repentance requires a person not claiming any goodness of one’s own or trying to justify one’s  actions, but being  humble to appeal  to God’s  mercy.The fellow in Luke15 became a victim of his presumptuous disposition, he hated correction , criticism  and suffered losses,he was in great despair until he came to his senses and made a u-turn in repentance.God does not bless sin.He frustrates the ways of the transgressor (Prov.22:12) He says in Prov 13:15KJV "Good understanding giveth favour: but the way of transgressors is hard."       God should not be approached in self-righteousness, but with a humble heart. We are to put all of our faith in a Saviour, and turn  from our wicked ways ( Acts 3:19,2 Chr. 7:14). Repentance is an indispensable part of salvation. It requires godly sorrow and a change o

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi Matt 6:22 KJV “The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.” Matt 6:19-24        The word ‘single’ is the Greek word ‘ Haplous’ which means: folded together , clear . It is used figuratively to mean a healthy eye which by the context of the narrative means to be generous. The text centers on the risk of materialism (seeking possessions). Unfortunately, it has always been used by preachers to mean being focused on a task, Christians were discouraged from developing multitask capabilities for fear of being labeled as not being focused . Before you would have finished reading this message you must have changed focus several times from one things to another.       The theology of being focused has caused more harm than good among God’s people. Preachers who are gifted in certain areas of life (business, arts etc.) have to abandon these potentially rewarding ventures in a bid to appear foc

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi   Matthew 12:37, "For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned."        The heavens and the earth came into existence  by the spoken word of God (Heb. 11:3) and Jesus Christ is the personification of God's word (John1:1-3,14) .All of creation was made by spoken words and can be altered by same.  When we speak words in faith,we activate either life or death (Prov. 18:21) and what we say affects people, things, and circumstances.Good words make us feel good and sad words makes one sad. You choose your mood by the kind of words you expose yourself to. Happiness and sadness is by choice.The gospel is full of good news and when spoken in faith can turn a sad situation into a good one.           We can release the power of  faith for the miraculous by our words. Every word counts. There is no such things as an "idle" or 'ordinary' word which will not work for us or against us. Our w