Good-life Daily Devotional

By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi  “My servant David will be their king, and they will have only one shepherd. They will obey my regulations and be careful to keep my decrees. " Ezekiel 37:24 Matthew 9:27 " 27 And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou Son of David, have mercy on us."      This scripture is not a reference to a reincarnated king David because speaks of his death and burial in 1kings 2:10 "So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David." David in Ezekiel 37:24 is referring to a character who shall come in the likeness of king David .    Matthew Poole's Commentary on this verse of the bible says : It is the " Son of David, who was also his Lord, that is here intended. My servant: the Messiah, in his mediatory office, is God’s servant and our Saviour. He rules over their hearts, and rule there in spiritual manner and this King shall be a Shepherd, that feeds, not fleeceth, the floc

  By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi  "Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before.  Then people who are not believers will respect the way you live, and you will not need to depend on others. " 1 Thessalonians 4:12   A research was carried out by a British magazine on the effect of children on marriages and it was  discovered couples tend to spend less time together where there are many children  "When we had just the two little ones we got regular time alone as a couple – my mum gladly took the boys together but it’s really hard to ask anyone to have three kids for the weekend." Metro.co .uk   This is one of the effect of a growing family.. Having a small family is not a guarantee for success in a marriage neither is having a large family. However couples have to be prepared for the liabilities that comes with being married especially having a growing family .    Ancient African culture w

Rev Michael Benson Ajayi ". After leaving the synagogue that day, Jesus went to Simon’s home, where he found Simon’s mother-in-law very sick with a high fever. “Please heal her,” everyone begged. 'Standing at her bedside, he rebuked the fever, and it left her. And she got up at once and prepared a meal for them.  As the sun went down that evening, people throughout the village brought sick family members to Jesus. No matter what their diseases were, .." Luke 4:48-40    With every emotional relationship comes responsibilities and it is in the fulfilment of these responsibilities that bonds are strengthened or broken depending on the  manner of approach.        It is important to know your purpose or mission on earth as earlier as possible , this could be obtained from discussions with parents or guardians. The purpose or mission of a child is usually revealed to the parents before birth or during the dedication of the child to the Lord.       There are also occasions where

  By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi Psalm 37 :4 "Delight thyself also in  the Lord; and he shall  give thee the desires of  thine heart. "   Psalm 112:1 " Praise ye the Lord. Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments."    King David was a man with shortcomings like us , he had a modest upbringing as a Shepherd but had a personal relationship with the Holy spirit ( the source of all wisdom and knowledge). He craved to know God on a more personal level that he said in Psalm 122: 1 "I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord." It was not because the teachings he received at the temple was always pleasant but he enjoyed the transformation it made in his life .    Many christians seek for where they will be told pleasant stories but not sound doctrines but not King David .He said in Psalm 141:5 "Let the righteous smite me; it shall be a kindness: and let him reprove me; it shall be an excel

     By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi 1 Kings 11:4 NIV   ” As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. ”        Satan recognizes the power of sexual intercourse and uses it to his advantage ,this is evident from the fact that one cannot go a minute without being bombarded with images of a sexual kind from the world's media.        The power of sex in decision making cannot be over emphasized. Eve was the most beautiful and seductive woman of her time,even animals were mesmerized by her beauty:  she persuaded Adam to turn against God in willful surrender to Satan  through her sexuality  (1Tim 2:14)  the use of sexual starvation as a bargaining tool is common among women with great sexuality and influence with negative consequences (1cor.7:5).     Likewise, King Solomon , despite his wisdom ,became a victim of sexual manipulation (1kings11:1-40) turning his back agains

  Rev Michael Benson Ajayi " His disciples came and asked him, “Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?”  He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not.  To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.      That is why I use these parables, For they look, but they don’t really see. They hear, but they don’t really listen or understand. This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says, ‘When you hear what I say,   you will not understand. When you see what I do, you will not comprehend. For the hearts of these people are hardened,   and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes—     so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear,  and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.’      “Bu

   By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi  "For this people’s heart is  waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at  any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with  their ears, and should  understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them." Matthew  13:15  " Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be  ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.." 2 Timothy 2:15      The word 'Study' in 2 Timothy 2;15 is the Greek word   spoudazō it  means : use speed, that is, to make effort, be prompt or earnest: - do diligence, be diligent , endeavour, labour, study. This means we should not delay to investigate the authenticity of words because as soon as a word is spoken it either results in  death or life .     The bible in Matthew 13:15  says healing comes from the understanding of scriptures therefore , it is our duty to bring healing to the nations through the prop

By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi   "Cease not to give thanks  for you, making mention of you in my prayers; That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,  the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the  knowledge of him:  The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may  know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in  the saints,  And what  is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who  believe, according to the working of his mighty power, " Ephesians 1;16-19     The above scripture highlights the importance of having a proper understanding of the bible. Apostle Paul imagined a time when he will be taken away by death from the church at Corinth and the consequence of a church being over dependent on the pastor for miracles . The consequence will be disastrous . Imagine a church where without the pastor's prayers there would be no jobs, healings , marriages , deliverance etc. It is

  By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi " And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him—  speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted his letters to mean something quite different, just as they do with other parts of Scripture. And this will result in their destruction.   You already know these things, dear friends. So be on guard; then you will not be carried away by the errors of these wicked people and lose your own secure footing. ' 2 Peter 3:15 -17      The scriptures constitutes the building block of the spiritual development of the church.  It is the source of faith without which it is impossible to please God . Faith is like fuel which well appropriated results in positive use however ,the abuse of faith results in destruction  . Faith builds and faith also destroys .   The bi

  By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi   " Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the  doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth  in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father  and the Son.  If there come any unto you, and  brunt not this doctrine, receive him not into your  house, neither bid him God speed: For he that  biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil  deeds." 2 John 1:9-11       There are four models for the interpretation of the bible and popular amongst  them is the Reader Response method and The Proof Text method . The Reader Response Method emphasizes that the reader determines what the text means mostly in new conflicting and illogical manner. This results in the loss of all means of authenticating the validity of the texts and the authority behind the text is lost.     The Proof Text Method relies on the pastor's experiences and depends on a naive reading of the text while disregarding the context  thus opening the abuse of the bible by spir

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi ' Why boastest thou  thyself in mischief, O  mighty man? the  goodness of God  endureth continually. " Psalm 52:1    One of the tactics of the devil against God's people is the twisting of the gospel by preachers who teach that the goodness of God towards a person is momentarily, therefore , they need special prayers where they would be required to make sacrificial offerings ( usually money ) to be given to the preachers so that God can become good to the person again .     This teaching is the foundation of the many financial ponzi schemes found in churches where a person is no longer required to work hard as their prosperity is guaranteed as long as they keep making contributions to an up line agent. It is the same thing among most modern churches . This makes these preachers very rich with church members becoming poorer. Africa boasts of the richest preachers with most parishioners living on less than a dollar a day as a result of bad theolo

By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi  James 4:17 "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.' Job 42: 8 "Therefore take unto you now seven  bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant  Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering;  and my servant Job shall pray for you: for him  will I accept: lest I deal with you after your folly,  in that ye have not spoken of me the thing which  is right, like my servant Job. '     Jesus Christ paid the once- in -a- life time price by offering himself as a vicarious atonement for humanity . No more sacrifice is needed for salvation from  sins. The bible says 12 But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand. The right hand is symbolic of God's standard and power of  righteousness . Jesus is our righteousness . Hebrews 10:12_14_26' For by that one offering he forever made perfect those wh

   By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi   2 Corinthians 10:3-6 " For though we walk in  the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:  (For the  weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but  mighty through God to the pulling down of strong  holds;)  Casting down imaginations, and every  high thing that exalteth itself against the  knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity  every thought to the obedience of Christ;  And  having in a readiness to revenge all  disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled."      The above scripture says we are in a spiritual warfare for the control of our minds by the enemy of our souls . He who controls your mind controls the world around you and invariably your life and that of those affiliated and or dependent on you.        Mind  Control is the greatest weapon the enemy uses against God's people . Terrorist organizations know this too well and use the greatest tool known to man ; religion , as the means to make  irrational ideologies appear ratio

      By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi  Josh 14:11 KJV “As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.”         Caleb was promised a parcel of land as a forty-five year old soldier and it took forty years for this to materialize .At the old age of eighty five years, he was willing and ready to engage the enemy in a battle to claim the promised land. What optimism! How long have you been waiting for the fulfillment of a promise in your life ? Caleb waited for forty years. In faith , Its never too late with God.          Following Jesus Christ requires walking by faith and this requires being optimistic . An optimist is a person with a positive outlook on life. He or she always looks out for the good in a situation no matter how bad it may seem; the opposite is a pessimist.  Optimism is a mental attitude or perspective . A common idiom used to illustrate optimism against pess

   By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi Acts 1:17-18 KJV“For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.”       This is the account of Judas Iscariot: one of the leaders of the early church. He was close to Jesus and assumed to be trustworthy given that he was in charge of the treasury (John13:29).Judas had built his security around money and social status therefore, whenever his finances were threatened his love for God , missionary work and will to live diminished. There are many of such persons in the church who have put the pursuit of money above love and fellowship with God's people. King David prayed against this "  Give me an eagerness for your laws  rather than a love for money!  Psalms 119:36 we need this prayer daily for our family.       These persons like Judas are often cynical and hypercritical of divinely cons

 By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi 'Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith." Galatians 3:14 NLTBible     The relationship between the believer in Jesus Christ and Abraham was consummated by the vicarious atonement for humanity by Christ's substitutionary sacrifice on the cross of Calvary .      This act of God's benevolence paved a way for those with Abraham's kind of faith to be declared righteous and adopted into Abraham's family .      We have the same rights and privileges as Abraham . The scriptures says God gave the promises to Abraham and his child. And notice that the Scripture doesn’t say “to his children, ” as if it meant many descendants. Rather, it says “to his child”—and that, of course, means Christ. For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true c

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi   Gen 3:10 KJV “And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.”      Adam's fall in the garden of Eden was the worst event to ever occur in the history of humanity . It marked the beginning of the decay of the human character. Genesis 3:10 highlights the consequences of this fall, firstly, it brought about fear instead of faith and secondly, nakedness : a sense of vulnerability. Nakedness is the product of low self-esteem, emotional and physical insecurity. An overwhelming sense of vulnerability and fear results in buried potentials; with people living below God’s standard for their lives.      The setting in the Eden was for God to have a one-of-a-kind relationship with Adam founded on unconditional love , discipline and wisdom .Adam misunderstood this through arrogance and presumptuousness : Satan gave a twisted version of God’s character centered on selfishness and this metamorphosed into religio

  Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi  Psalm 119:71 “It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I might learn thy statues."       The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ meant that all the demands of the law were fulfilled (Matthew.5:17). Failure to obey the laws of Moses meant death for the guilty party and Jesus Christ took the place of humanity on the cross taking upon himself all our curses (past,present,future) leaving none behind, that's what the scriptures means when it says "becoming a curse for us.." {Galatians3:13, Deuteronomy21:23 } The blood of Jesus Christ is our eternal immunity against curses (Ephesians 1:7,Hebrew.10:10). The era of the ministration  of condemnation and curses ended when Jesus Christ was crucified (2Corinthians.3:9-11) we are under the ministration of righteousness (Romans.3:28) unfortunately, many preachers still minister condemnation by attributing trials, temptations to curses from the laws of Moses or from witches and wizards. This

  By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi    Luke 18:9-14“….. I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."       It is difficult to wrap one’s religious mind around Jesus’ statement in Luke 18:14 where he declared a sinner  ‘Justified’. The word 'Justified' as used in this scripture is the Greek word “dikaioo “and it means to render (i.e. show or regard a person as) just or innocent. It means to declare a person righteous.  Man-made religion defines a righteous man as that fellow with a good public record  like the Pharisee in Luke 18:11 “For I don't cheat, I don't sin, and I don't commit adultery. I'm certainly not like that tax collector!” But  God’s definition of a perfect or righteous man according to James 3:2 is that fellow who….” does not offend in speech [never says the wrong things],  …”  (Amplified Bible).       Humans (bishops,